Black and Pink
by Toby Danger
Summary: Draculaura has always been seen as cute, cheerful and sometimes very immature. But an unexpected event will force her and her friends to face the dark past she has tried to keep hidden for so long, and re-evaluate how to live her unlife as graduation approaches.
1. Unveiling

Monster High: Black and Pink

Monster High is copyright of Mattel

 _With the reboot of the Monster High franchise now in full swing, I felt it was the perfect time to write about one of the subjects that has never been fully explained in MH's canon: Why did Draculaura stop drinking blood?_

 _It's one of those questions that has never been answered, even though we've had lots of information about Draculaura and her family in recent years. So I'd like to present my own take on Draculaura's past, as well as exploring the idea of what she might be like if she was a little more mature than how she's presented in the webisodes and movies._

 _This story contains lots of references to past Monster High movies, webisodes and books, so beware, there are a few spoilers about._

 _With that said, let's start the show. I hope you all enjoy this first chapter._

* * *

It had all started as just another day.

The school was returning to normal after being repaired, and the students were getting over the shock of a giant Kraken emerging from the swimming pool, smashing several buildings, then apologising and helping repair the damage before returning from wence it came. Kala Mer'ri and the Serpentine twins had returned to the Great Scarrier Reef, all promising to take home the lessons they had learned from Monster High and to keep in touch in Lagoona. The Fear Squad and their friends were praised for once again saving the school from destruction, before the incident was put aside and life was returned to normal.

Now the ghouls were busy concentrating on studying for their last series of tests and classes over the next few months before summer break, and wondering what their senior year would bring.

"I still can't believe we only have a little over a year before we have to leave here." Frankie spoke quietly as she gazed around the study howl. "So much has happened here.. it feels like a second home, you know?"

"Yeah, I get you. I'm gonna miss this place when I go back home." Lagoona was sombre. "We've had so many wonderful experiences."

"I wouldn't exactly call our several near death adventures 'wonderful'. Cleo made little question marks with her fingers. "Seriously, how many times were we almost killed this scaremester alone?"

"I hear that." Clawdeen nodded as she filed her claws. "Don't get me wrong, I don't regret anything that's happened. Those escapades have helped us all grow up a little. But why does everything always happen to us?"

"I know.. it is like we are stars of popular kids cartoon franchise or something." Abbey huffed.

"I just hope we don't get into any more trouble before summer break." Draculaura added as she glanced at her iCoffin.

"Hail Ra to that. I don't think my nerves, or my hair, can take another adventure." Cleo sighed. Ghoulia let out a groan of agreement.

"You know... Mr D'eath said that he was going to start advising us on our future plans for when we leave school." Frankie spoke with a hint of nervousness in her voice.

Draculaura grimaced. "Ugh, stuck in a warm room with Mr D'eath droning on forever. I think I'd rather be staked."

"I know, but he made a good point. He said we should start thinking about college, and what we're going to do after that."

"I already got that in the bag." Clawdeen spoke proudly. "I've had a few fashion and design colleges asking me to join them ever since my fashion show in Scaris. Some have even offered scholarships. I figure I'll see which one helps me out best and... boom! I'm on my way to my fashion empire."

"Daddy's already promised to get me into Scarvard to study business." Cleo spoke nonchalantly. "Once I have my degree, I intend to get a job managing one of his businesses."

"Taking after your old man, huh?" Lagoona asked.

Cleo sneered. "Please, after that nightmare in Boo York, I'm convinced my father's method of doing things is still stuck in the stone age. I intend to surpass him and start my own dynasty... or at least prove I've got more initiative and responsibility in my little finger than Nefera has in her entire body."

"After graduation, I plan to return to mountains and help run family farm." Abbey stated.

"Seriously? Not even going to college?" Frankie blinked.

"We have large farm at my home, need to be there to help out." Abbey smiled. "But I intend to use all that I have learned here to make things better for my family and my clan."

"I'm seriously considering going home to the Great Scarrier Reef to study marine biology." Lagoona spoke up, looking pensive. "It's something I've always wanted to do, but..."

"Let me guess, worried about you and Gil?" Clawdeen asked.

"He wants to get into engineering, and I'm totally for it. But if we have to go to different parts of the world.. what does that mean for our relationship? We've finally gotten to a point where we're not dealing with his parents all the time, and now we might have to break up?" She let out a sad sigh.

Cleo patted her shoulder sympathetically. "I understand. But Deuce is thinking about attending cooking or business at Scarvard so we can still be close. Maybe Gil could attend college at the reef?"

"Maybe... I don't know if there's much demand for engineering under the ocean.."

Ghoulia groaned, pointing out that with the internet, communication over distances was easier than ever.

"Yeah, but it doesn't make keeping a relationship any easier." Frankie sighed. "What about you and Moe?"

"Uuuuugh." Ghoulia replied.

"Both you and Moe are going to college in Portland? That's lucky." Frankie smiled.

"Errrgh?" Ghoulia asked.

"What do I want to do? I don't know really." Frankie spoke, worry in her voice. "I want to be a doctor like my dad, but I'm also really tempted to go into Mad Science... and I don't know which school I want to go to. Dad suggests this college in Goremany where he studied, but I might want to study closer to home..."

She closed her eyes in frustration. "I really don't know what to do."

"Hey, relax ghoul." Clawdeen held her shoulder. "You're not the only monster who doesn't have everything planned yet. Lots of people aren't sure what to do yet. You've still got plenty of time, so just relax and review your options."

"Yeah, whatever you decide, we'll be totally behind you." Draculaura spoke up.

Frankie relaxed a little. "Yeah... you're right. Graduation is still a long time away. Who knows what might happen before then."

She turned to Draculaura. "So, do you have anything planned?"

Draculaura blinked. "Oh... nothing at the moment."

The ghouls looked surprised.

"Really? Nothing?" Cleo raised her eyebrows.

"Well, you know, its not like I'm in a rush or anything." Draculaura shrugged. " There's plenty of time to figure something out, and even after graduation, I don't have to worry about college or a job for a while. I've got... well, forever."

Clawdeen narrowed her eyes. "Don't tell me you're going to just mooch off your dad for the rest of your unlife?"

"No!... Well, maybe for a little until I know what I'm going to do." Her eyes took on a dreamy look. "I definitely know I don't want to be too far apart from Clawd... maybe we'll move into our own place together."

"Without even knowing what you're going to do for a career?" Frankie looked astonished. "That sounds... really unwise."

"It'll be okay. When the time comes, I'll figure it out." Dracuaura assured, waving a hand dismissively.

Her iCoffin rung, and she whipped it out. "Ooh, its Ramoanah. Hold on, let me take this."

She moved behind some bookcases to take the call, her friends watching her as she left.

"Suddenly I feel a lot more confident about my plans. At least I want to make some." Frankie sighed. "I can't believe Laura would be so blase about something as important as college."

"Oh, like this is a new thing?" Cleo sniffed, checking her nails. "That ghoul is even flightier than a harpy."

"Yeah... I love her like a sister, but I gotta admit, she can be really immature at times." Clawdeen sighed.

Frankie tapped her chin in thought. "You know.. I've always wondered about that."

"About what?" Lagoona asked.

"Well... why does Draculaura go to high school anyway? I mean, she's older than me and my parents put together. Surely she should know... well, everything by now. She shouldn't need a high school education."

"Trust me Frankie, immortality does not automatically make you a genius." Cleo spoke. "Look at my sister for example."

"Quite a few students at Monster High are centuries old." Ghoulia pointed out in Zombish. "But the majority of them have little knowledge about the modern world. They're either been hibernating in crypts, coffins or tombs for centuries, or have lived in isolation for years, away from modern life. Places like Monster High are the first chances those monsters have had to earn a proper modern education."

"Oh yeah, like Andy." Frankie realised.

Clawdeen nodded. "True... lots of the older monsters need a lot of time to get used to the stuff we take for granted today. I remember when I first met Draculaura. I showed her my iCoffin, and it blew her mind."

"I know how confusing it can be to end up in a different time than you're used to." Cleo said. "I recall being so overwhelmed when my family first came to America. If it hadn't been for the tutors my father hired, I don't know how I would have coped."

Ghoulia smirked. "You coped really well, though I do recall passing by your house the first time you experienced winter. You and Nefera were kneeling on your front lawn, begging for Ra to take the snow away."

The ghouls chuckled, while Cleo crossed her arms and glared at them. "I lived in a desert for most of my life. Excuse me for not knowing what snow was at the time."

Frankie glanced over at Draculaura. "So I guess Draculaura is still new to modern life, huh?"

"More or less. I don't know the full story, but she and her dad had to leave Transylvania in a hurry, and they were entombed in coffins for a few decades before they moved to America." Clawdeen replied.

"Oh my ghoul, really?!" Draculaura suddenly exclaimed. "Sure, I'll let them know. Thank you so much!"

She returned to the group. "I just got fangtastic news! You know how my stepmother works in antiquities?"

They nodded. During her father's wedding, Draculaura's stepmother Ramoanah had regaled them with a few tales of her career in finding and restoring antiques.

"Well, for the last few weeks she's been working at that new museum that opening in Salem tomorrow, collecting some items for their exhibits and such. Anyway, they're holding a special gala opening for some of the supporters, sponsors and some other important guests.. and Ramoanah wants to invite us!"

The ghouls all gasped in delight. They had heard much about the Salem Museum while it was being built, mainly from their parents who were excited about the added tourism it would bring to their town.

"Sounds fabulous. As long as it's not a repeat of Boo York, count me in!" Cleo smiled.

"Have been meaning to get a little more culture. I am in too." Abbey added.

"Great! Ooh, and you all have a plus one, so you could bring your boos, or someone else." Draculaura said.

"Really?" Frankie hopped in her seat. "Ooh, I should totally bring Andy. He'd love to see the sculptures."

Draculaura couldn't help but smirk a little. While Frankie and Andy weren't officially dating, they'd been spending a lot of time together lately. Maybe the gala could finally push the two towards being a couple.

"Ooh, we need to figure out what we're gonna wear tomorrow. Ramoanah says it's going to be really fancy, and I want Clawd and I to match. We should totally head for the maul after school.."

The quiet room of the study howl was soon filled with excited discussion from the group of friends.

* * *

"...And there'll be a live band to perform after the presentation is over, so we might be able to do a little dancing." Draculaura cuddled up against Clawd, the two of them sitting under a tree near the outdoor pool.

"Sounds great, but you know I'm not the best at dancing." Clawd admitted.

"Oh, it'll be fine. It'll probably be a few waltzes like at Ramoanah's wedding."

He raised an eyebrow. "Need I remind you, I almost crashed into your dad doing one of those waltzes. I don't want to look a fool in front of him again."

Draculaura smiled. "Don't worry. If you have trouble, I'll show you the steps. And you don't have to worry about Daddy. He won't be able to attend."

"Really?"

She sighed. "Yeah, he wanted to. But he had to fly to Antartica last night to sort out some problems with that renewable energy project of his. It's a shame really, he was really looking forward to seeing what old stuff Ramoanah had found for the exhibit. She's been keeping it a secret."

"Yeah, shame." Clawd smirked at her. "Still, if he's away, I guess he can't object to us maybe taking a little trip to Dead Manster's Bluff afterwards."

"Ooh, sounds great." Draculaura grinned impishly. Dead Manster's Bluff was becoming a notorious make out spot as of late.

Clawd blinked as he remembered something. "Oh hey, I got some good news. I got letters from a few colleges inviting me to check them out."

Draculaura froze. "You.. did?"

"Yeah, one from Scarvard, one from Screeattle.. I was thinking about visiting them over the next few weeks, see which one looks best. Hey, maybe you could come with me..."

Clawd noticed his ghoulfriend suddenly looked nervous, even as she smiled at him.

"Oh that sounds boring. Why don't we go see a movie instead?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Afterwards maybe, yeah. But I can't put this off. I have to start thinking about where I'm going once I leave school after summer."

"Well.. you don't have to rush... I mean.." She squirmed uncomfortably. "Hey! What time is it?

Clawd checked his watch. "Umm, it's just gone 3:30.. Hey, did Cleo cancel your fearleading practice today? I thought you were supposed to be there."

"Oh my god!" Draculaura leaped off his lap. "I totally forgot! Gotta go! Kiss you later!"

"Oh, I gotta fill in a couple of hours at my part time job after school." Clawd said as Draculaura grabbed her bag. "But I'll pick you up at your place."

"Great!" Draculaura called as she rushed off.

As she headed towards the gym, one thought kept running through her head.

" _Don't think about it.. don't think about how he's leaving after the summer.. just don't think about it!_ "

* * *

One very hurried change later, she rushed into the gym, where the rest of the Fear Squad were waiting.

Cleo stood with her arms crossed, glaring at her. "You're late."

"Sorry, sorry!" Draculaura took her place next to the others, readying her pompoms. "I got a little distracted."

"By Clawd?" Cleo growled. "Even I can tear myself away from Deuce to attend other important matters.

Draculaura rolled her eyes. "Sorry. Let's just get on with it."

"Alright.." Cleo pointed to a diagram of a cheer formation, being held up by Ghoulia. "This is the Dark de Triumph, one of the most difficult formations out there. I intend for us to have it down perfectly by the time the regional competition starts." She snapped her fingers. "So lets get to it!"

Several minutes of practice and organisation later, and with Ghoulia directing from a distance, the Fear Squad performed the Dark de Triumph - Several backflips and a jump onto each other's shoulders, forming a arc like shape not unlike the Arc de Triumph. Cleo, naturally, got to stand up top and center.

"Wonderful ghouls, wonderful!" Cleo praised from the top of the formation. She looked down at Ghoulia. "Quick Ghoulia, get a picture of this!"

Ghoulia slowly shambled over to a table to pick up her diePad.

Draculaura, who was holding Cleo on her shoulders, winced. "Please hurry up Ghoulia. I'm not sure I can hold this for long."

"Speak for yourself, we're taking all the weight down here!" The goblin ghoul Draculaura was standing on complained.

As Ghoulia shuffled back to take a picture, Gory Fangtell entered the gym, followed by a small group of female vampires. She led them toward the fearleaders, pointing to them as if she was a tour guide.

"..and here is our fearleading squad. They're pretty good, won the Mashional Championships twice in a row. If you plan on joining, just watch out for Cleo, the captain. She can be a real slavedriver."

"Gory." Cleo called in a displeased tone. "What are you doing here? We're trying to practice."

"Relax, your majesty." Gory replied, indicating the other vampires. "These are some old friends of mine from the Old World. They've just come out of their tombs and need some schooling, so I thought I'd show them around."

One rather twinky looking vampire stared up at the formation. "Wow, that is clawsome."

"Thank you." Draculaura called back. "If you're interested in joining the team, we have a few...

She stopped when she noticed the vampire had pulled out a packet of blood from her purse and began sipping it from a straw.

A wave of nausea washed over her as she caught the scent of the blood, and she began to feel faint. She began swaying as she tried to stay awake, causing the entire top of the formation to wobble unsteadily.

"What are you doing?!" Cleo shrieked.

Clawdeen tightened her grip. "Keep it together, we're gonna fall..."

Too late, Draculaura fainted and fell forward, causing the entire formation to collapse on itself. The entire Fear Squad tumbled to the ground, landing on the mats, and each other.

Gory hid a smile behind her hand as she watched the groaning pile of fearleaders try to get up. "Oh dear.. of course, nobody's perfect."

"Whoa, are you okay?!" The visiting vampires rushed to help up the fearleaders. One helped up Draculaura, who was busy extracting one of Frankie's severed hands from her top.

"Ooh, I'm fine, thank you. I just felt..." She noticed the vampire was still holding the pack of blood, and suddenly jolted backwards. "Ahh! Keep it away!"

The vampire looked at her, then at the blood pack. "Did she just freak out at blood?"

Grinning evilly, Gory stepped closer. "Oh yes, this is Draculaura, the only vampire in this school with a phobia of blood."

"She's scared of blood? How does that work?"

"I've been trying to figure that out for years." Gory led the vampires away. "Lets leave them to it, I want to show you the vampire common room..."

Draculaura glared at them as they walked away, feeling incredibly humiliated. Cleo glaring at her with a death stare wasn't helping things.

"Well, thank you for making us look like a complete laughing stock! She's probably telling all the Belfry Prep gang about this!"

"What happened up there?" Frankie asked as she reattached her legs.

Draculaura shook her head. "I'm sorry... I saw that blood pack and... I couldn't help myself."

"Couldn't help yourself.." Cleo threw up her hands. "For the love of Ra, Draculaura! I know you don't like blood, but surely you could control yourself and not act a complete fool when you're near the stuff!"

"Well excuse me! Like you guys don't have phobias." Draculaura retorted. "I didn't complain about your fear of the dark, or Lagoona's stage fright."

"At least we've tried to get over our fears and learned to cope with them." Cleo glared back. "Maybe you should try doing the same."

She sighed as she gazed over the fallen fearleaders. "Alright, this practice is a bust. Let's call it a day and pick this up tomorrow. And lets all try to be a little more professional next time." She eyed Draculaura as she uttered those last words.

The fearleaders picked themselves up, some still groaning and rubbing sore spots. Draculaura sighed, wondering how she could make it up to Cleo.

* * *

"Ugh... I'm still sore from that tumble.." Draculaura rubbed her hip as she and the other ghouls sat down in Ancient History class. "Not to mention embarrassed."

"Hey, it happens." Frankie shrugged as she sat next to her. "At least the day can only get better from here."

As the class settled in, Mr Rotter stepped up from his desk. "Now then students, today is the day for your joint history presentations. Remember, both members of each team must deliver a concise, cohesive half of the report for both to recieve the full grade." He checked his roster. "Lets start with... Lagoona Blue and Rochelle Goyle."

As Lagoona and Rochelle took to the stage and began talking about Atlantian architecture, Frankie murmured to Draculaura, her own partner. "So, do you want to open our report, or will I?"

Draculaura's eyes widened. "Oh no... I forgot."

Frankie looked at her with disbelief. "You forgot? I told you just the other night that it was due today."

"I'm sorry!" Draculaura pleaded. "I just got caught up with some other things and it slipped my mind."

"Other things? What other things?"

"Well, I was chatting with Clawd... then I was long distance chatting with Elissabat, then I went to look up something on Frightube and ended up watching cute bat videos for a hour or so..." With each statement, Frankie looked even more mortified.

Draculaura cringed guiltily. "Sorry."

"What are we going to do? I can't present this thing on my own." Frankie glanced nervously at Mr Rotter. "Maybe we should take our lumps and ask for an extra day.."

"No, I can fix this." Draculaura pulled out a notebook and carefully hid her iCoffin behind a textbook. "I'll look up the main facts on Spookipedia, I can make a report right now. No problem."

She started writing, then stopped and glanced at Frankie. "Um... what's the report about again?"

"The history of Boo York!" Frankie slapped her forehead in exasperation.

For the next few minutes, as more students gave their reports, Draculaura frantically checked her phone and scribbled down notes. It wasn't too long though, before Mr Rotter called them to the front.

"Don't worry, I can pull this off. We'll get a good grade for sure." Draculaura assured under her breath to Frankie.

Nervously, Frankie held up her notes and began.

* * *

"...and so, that's how Boo York rose from being a tiny fishing village to one of the biggest cities in the Monster Federation."

Draculaura finished her essay, and looked out at the watching students. All of them were staring at her and Frankie with confused looks, some chuckling under their breath. She could hear some students talking under their breath.

"What kind of essay was that? She got all the facts wrong."

"I didn't understand half the stuff she said."

"Did she even study for this?"

"Dude, I'm flunking this class and even I know most of those things she said are bogus."

Mr Rotter let out a long sigh.

"Miss Dracul, what you have just read is one of the most insanely idiotic essays I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you and Miss Stein no grade, and may God, Baphomet, and whatever other gods you follow have mercy on your soul."

Several students let out laughs or cries of "Sick burn!". Frankie glared at her angrily.

Draculaura looked down at her feet, tears in her eyes. "A simple 'F' would have sufficed."

* * *

"Thanks a lot Draculaura." Frankie ground out as the two exited the class. "Were you seriously just making stuff up in that essay?"

"I said I'm sorry. I wasn't able to finish before Mr Rotter called us up" Draculaura sighed. "At least we were able to convince Mr Rotter to give us some extra credit work to make up the grade. We can do that over the weekend no problem."

"That's not the point!" Frankie snapped at her. "I was planning to spend time with Andy over the weekend. Now I've got to cancel our plans so I can get this extra homework done."

Draculaura winced. "I didn't know... I'm so sorry. But at least you two can still be together at the gala tonight."

Frankie smiled. "Yeah, that's something to look forward to... Ooh! I need to pick out one of my best dresses for tonight."

Clawdeen joined the two. "Good call ghoul. You don't want to end up unprepared again." She glanced at Draculaura at that comment. Draculaura just sighed and rolled her eyes.

"So Clawdeen, who are you taking to the gala tonight?" Frankie asked the werewolf.

"Eh, I'm just gonna go solo." Clawdeen shrugged. "Maybe I'll give my plus one to someone else who wants to see the gala."

"Really?" Draculaura blinked. "You're going on your own?"

"Oh, I won't be alone. I'll be with you guys." Clawdeen smiled. She checked her iCoffin. "Ah, I gotta get to the Fashion club. Catch you later."

Draculaura watched her as she dashed off. "Poor Clawdeen. It doesn't feel right that she should the only one at the gala without a date..."

"Maybe she's fine being on her own." Frankie shrugged.

An idea hit Draculaura. "I know! I'll find her a date for the evening." She pulled out her phone.

"I wouldn't do that." Frankie warned. "She wasn't happy about that speed dating thing you pulled last year, remember?"

"Oh, you're right."

"You know how touchy Clawdeen gets about dating. Just let her do her own thing. And don't do something dumb like set her up with a blind date."

Draculaura sighed. "Alright, fine."

She stepped away, feeling disappointed that Clawdeen wouldn't have a date. All she wanted was for her friend to find romance with someone...

Suddenly, she hit an idea. Instead of a blind date, she could set her up with someone she already knew, someone she'd already had a brief romance with. There's no way Clawdeen would take issue with that.

She grabbed her phone and called a certain number.

"Hello, Thad? Oh, it's been so long... So I heard you're in town..."

* * *

School came to an end, and Draculaura rushed home. She entered the Dracul mansion, happy and a little disappointed that only Count Fabulous was there to meet her. Her father was away on his business trip in Antartica, and Renfield the butler was on his regular vacation to Transylvania. Ramoanah was no doubt busy at the museum.

She checked her watch. The Gala was at seven , plenty of time to find the perfect dress. And she could call Clawd to make sure his outfit looked good and complemented hers. He could be such a scruff sometimes...

Her phone rang. "Hello?" She answered.

"Hello darling." Ramoanah spoke. "Sorry to bother you. Are you getting ready for the gala?"

"I'm about to, yes. Is something wrong?"

"No no, I was just wondering if you could run a small errand for me. I've been so busy setting everything up at the museum, it completely slipped my mind."

"Sure, what do you need?" Draculaura smiled, happy to help her stepmother.

"Well, I was meant to pick up some snacks for the gala, but I just wasn't able to get away. Could you pick them up for me on your way to the gala?"

"Oh sure. I'm totes on it."

"Oh thank you darling. I really appreciate it. I'll send the order for the food and where to pick it up to your email. I'll see you tonight."

Draculaura hung up, then headed to her room. Her phone beeped as it recieved the email, but she paid it no heed. For now, she had to concentrate on finding the ideal outfit. But that wouldn't take too long..

* * *

Frankie hummed a tune as she applied make-up to her face... which she had removed from her head and placed on a mannequin's head on her vanity. Make-up was so much easier when you could actually reach out and apply it to your face in front of you.

As she finished applying eyeshadow, her iCoffin buzzed. She picked it up, thinking Andy had texted her. They had agreed to walk to the museum gala, to spend a bit of time together before attending the event. It might be one of the few chances they would have to spend time together, just the two of them, before she was stuck with that extra credit work over the weekend.

To her slight disappointment, it was a text from Draculaura.

" _Please come over to my place! I need major help! It's an emergency!_ "

Frankie quickly reattached her face, grabbed her handbag and phone, and started on her way out. From the tone of the text, Draculaura sounded pretty upset. This had to be something really dire for her to call for help.

* * *

Draculaura stepped out of her closet, clad in a black and pink striped skirt and jacket. "How about this? Do you think it looks too showy?"

From their seat on Draculaura's bed, Frankie, Clawdeen and Lagoona let out tired sighs.

"Yes, its too showy. Like I said about the last striped thing you showed us." Clawdeen sighed.

"Oh bats!" Draculaura rushed back into the closet. "Hold on, I'm gonna pair the skirt with that top I showed you earlier."

Frankie rubbed her arms, trying to get some feeling back into them. "You know, when you said you had an emergency, this wasn't what I had in mind."

"You don't think this is an emergency! There's a big important gala, and I have nothing to wear!"

"You have like, 1600 years worth of outfits in there." Lagoona replied.

"And I've worn every single one at one point!" Draculaura returned, dressed in a pink evening dress and holding the skirt and another top in her hands. "I can't go there in something old."

"Hasn't most of that stuff been in there for years anyway?" Lagoona pointed. "No one will even know if it's new or not."

"And no one's going to care anyway. "Frankie huffed. "They'll be too busy looking at the exhibits"

"That's no excuse to not look my best." Draculaura retorted as she looked at herself in the mirror. "Oh this won't do. I wore this at Cleo's last birthday." She retreated into the closet.

"Auugh!" Clawdeen threw up her hands. "This is taking forever! We've got like, 40 minutes or so before the gala starts. Just pick something already!"

"Okay, okay." Draculaura called. "There's no need to be so testy. We've still got plenty of time."

"Yeah, but did it occur to you we might have wanted to do other things before the gala?" Frankie frowned as she texted Andy, asking him to meet her at the museum instead.

"Too right, I was gonna do some homework before I left." Lagoona stated. "You didn't really need us to help you pick out an outfit."

"But I do. You guys have always had a much sharper sense of fashion than me."

Clawdeen rolled her eyes. "And yet whenever I suggest you give up the pink for once and try a different colour, you always ignore me."

Draculaura returned, wearing a different pink dress. "I think we finally have a winner. What do you think?"

"It looks great, can we go now?" Frankie begged.

Draculaura sat at her vanity and grabbed her phone. "Sure, just let me call Clawd, he's picking me up."

She spun her seat around as she talked. "Hey sweetie, I'm just about ready to go. Ooh, could you wear that purple waistjacket I gave you? ...Thanks, see you soon."

"Um, why are you telling him what to wear?" Clawdeen raised an eyebrow. "I know my brother ain't the most fashion savvy, but he can still dress himself."

"But I want to make sure our outfits don't clash." Draculaura said.

"But you've been deciding on different looks all night." Frankie blinked in realization. "Don't tell me you've asked him to change outfits every time."

Draculaura shrugged as she held up her phone. "Maybe... once or twice."

On the phone, the ghouls could see a long exchange of texts between her and Clawd, mostly consisting of several selfies of her in her various outfits and Clawd asking what would go best with them.

Draculaura cringed under her friend's gazes. "Okay... maybe more than that."

* * *

Ten minutes later, with Draculaura finally dressed, they headed outside just in time to see Clawd pull up in his old Grimaro. He stepped out to greet them, clad in a purple trimmed suit and looking rather tired.

Draculaura rushed over and hugged him. She looked him over. "Wow, you look great."

Clawd smiled weakly. "Considering all the changes you suggested, I hope so."

"You look beat, bro." Clawdeen commented. "Are you alright?"

"Just a really busy shift at work." Clawd waved a hand. "I would have gotten some rest at home, but Draculaura called so we could coordinate our outfits, and I've been running in and out of my closet since then."

"Really?" Clawdeen shot Draculaura a dirty look.

"Well, it was totally worth it. You look fangtastic, and we totally match." Draculaura held his arm.

Clawd checked his watch. "Oh man, it's almost time. I can give you ghouls a lift if you need one." He addressed Clawdeen, Frankie and Lagoona.

"That would be great, thanks Clawd." Frankie thanked.

The ghouls piled into the car, and Clawd started it up. They had only driven a couple of blocks when Draculaura, who was checking her phone, suddenly gasped in surprise.

"Oh my ghoul! I almost forgot. I need to pick up some buffet food for Ramoanah. Clawd, can we stop to pick it up?"

"Yeah, sure." Clawd turned the car toward the town center. "It's not going to take long, is it? We're cutting it close for time as it is."

"Oh, it shouldn't take long. We just need to pick it up from..." Draculaura read the email Ramoanah had sent her. "Oh no."

"Where is it?"

"...Mortavitch's Deli."

Clawdeen let out a moan at the significance of that fact. The deli, owned by Slo-Moe's parents, was one of the most popular eateries in Salem, famed for it's superb meat dishes such as pulled brain sandwiches and raw steak subs. She and her family ate there regularly. Draculaura, with her aversion of meat, had never set foot in the place.

"Could one of you guys go in and pick it up for me?" Draculaura pleaded. "You know I can't stand going in there."

"I'll go." Clawdeen couldn't quite hide the annoyance in her voice.

The car pulled up outside the brightly lit deli. Clawdeen dashed inside.

"You know, they do vegan sandwiches in there." Clawd turned to Draculaura. "And honestly, the smell of the meat isn't that bad. With all the air conditioning in there, even we wolves can barely smell it."

"It's not just the smell, just the sight of meat freaks me out." Draculaura shivered.

"You ever consider taking therapy or something to get over it?" Lagoona asked. "I've been visiting Twyla and her mother lately to talk about my stage fright. No one knows about fears better than a boogeyman."

"I thought you'd accepted your stage fright."

"Yeah, doesn't mean I should stop trying to overcome it. I mean, I might need to stand before an audience for work or school in the future. It would be nice to get through a speech without going belly up."

Draculaura stared at her feet. "I don't know... I don't think it's that big a deal..."

"I would go for it." Clawd spoke up. "I wouldn't want to live my unlife letting my fears hold me back."

He shifted a little closer to her. "Speaking for fears, I found out Screeattle University is holding an open day in a couple of weeks. I'm a little nervous about going, so maybe we could go together..."

"Music!" Draculaura suddenly jolted and switched on the radio. "It's a little quiet, lets play some tunes.

She sat back and hummed along with the latest Rita Gora song. Clawd stared at her, confused as to why she didn't want to hear him out.

Clawdeen returned and poked her head through the window. "Laura, you gotta come in here. Mr Mortavich won't give me the food."

"What? Why not?"

"He says people have been swiping big orders without paying, so he needs an ID from the person who ordered it. Ramoanah called him, he said he was expecting you."

"I... I can't" Draculaura inched away from Clawdeen. "All that meat... I'll faint right away!"

"I know, but if you don't come in, we're not getting that food."

Lagoona patted her shoulder. "You gotta face your fears sometime, love. Now's a good place to start."

Draculaura looked back and forth between her friends and the deli. Finally, she came to a decision.

"Clawd, do you still have those sunglasses in your glove compartment? And Frankie, can I borrow your scarf?

* * *

Mr Mortavitch blinked as he watched the strangely dressed figure approach the counter. It appeared to be a young ghoul in a pink evening dress, but she wore dark sunglasses which seemed too big for her head, and a silk scarf wrapped around her mouth and nose. She shuffled up to the counter, turning her head away from the meat display and looking very unsteady on her feet.

She pulled the scarf away from her mouth with one hand, and held up a driving license with the other. "Hello Mr Mortavitch. It's me, Draculaura. I'm here to pick up my order."

She covered her face again. Mr Mortavitch looked at her license, then at her, with a puzzled expression. Eventually, he shrugged and went to get the order. Ghouls wore such weird fashions these days...

Draculaura took small breaths under the scarf, keeping her gaze away from the meat. One look and she'd be out for the count.

Mr Mortavitch lurched back, carrying several trays full of food. Draculaura quickly picked them up, but paused when she noticed the order form taped to the top of the stack, which listed all the food purchased. She read the list, her eyebrows raising.

"Oh my... there's hardly any vegan food in this at all." Indeed, there were more meat dishes than vegan. It didn't seem right for there not to be a little more choice. She knew Ramoanah was still new to vegan meals, having lived on blood and such for centuries in Transylvania before moving in with her and her father. Maybe she hadn't realized the choice of vegan foods available when she made the order.

Well, maybe she could help improve this order.

She pulled out her credit card. "Sorry to bother you Mr Mortavitch, but could you add a few more things to this order?"

* * *

The neo-gothic architechture of the Salem Museum was lit up with large spotlights, illuminating the banners which decorated the entrance, and a red carpet leading inside. Ramoanah anxiously stood outside, watching for any sign of her stepdaughter.

An old Grimaro pulled into the parking area, and Draculaura, Clawd and her friends piled out. Draculaura and Clawd pulled out several buffet trays before approaching her.

"Laura, thank goodness. You're ten minutes late, I thought something had happened."

"Sorry, we got held up." Draculaura apologized. "Where can we put this food?"

"The buffet table's over here." Ramoanah led them inside. They entered a large round room, with several paintings, sculptures and display cases set against the walls and displayed on the floor, and corridors leading to more exhibits. A stage was set up at the far end, with some large items covered in tarps placed on it. Several well dressed monsters stood around, admiring the displays.

As they walked in, they spotted Cleo and Deuce standing in the middle, Cleo looking rather impatient. Andy, Gil, Ghoulia and Moe, Spectra, Abbey and Heath were also present.

"Well, you finally got here." Cleo sniffed. "I thought I would be the one to come fashionably late."

"Are those snacks?" Heath looked at the trays. "I'm famished."

"I hear that, bro. I haven't eaten since I got off work." Clawd agreed. "Let's get this stuff ready."

He, Draculaura and Ramoanah approached a large table, and began opening the trays and arranging the plates of food. As they did so, Ramoanah noticed something odd.

"Strange... I don't recall ordering this many plates. And I certainly didn't order hummus crackers."

"Oh, that was me!" Draculaura smiled proudly. "I noticed you didn't have a lot of vegan snacks on your list, so I got some for you."

"What?" Ramoanah stared at her, aghast. "Why on earth would you do that?"

"I just wanted to help and give the guests a bigger vegan choice" Draculaura pouted.

Ramoanah's lips were in a tight line. "Laura, I appreciate the thought, but this isn't what I asked for. This is way too much food. Not to mention I had asked the guests beforehand what their preference was."

Draculaura blinked. "I.. I didn't know."

"Well, you really should have asked beforehand. I could have told you what we needed.. Now we're going to have a lot of food wasted." Ramoanah spoke firmly.

"I'm sorry... I could take some of it home." Draculaura offered weakly.

A vampire assistant sidled up to Ramoanah and whispered something in her ear.

"We'll discuss this later.. I need to get ready for the presentation. Excuse me."

She moved away, leaving Draculaura staring at the platter disappointingly.

"I thought she'd be happy." She sighed.

Clawd patted her shoulder. "Hey, you made a mistake, it happens. Besides, you never know, these folks might just like the vegan stuff."

They looked out at the room, expecting the attending monsters to grab a snack. Only one vampire approached the table, only to hiss in fright and move away quickly once he saw the vegan food.

Draculaura just groaned.

* * *

"I gotta admit, some of this stuff is pretty hot." Heath spoke as he admired a display of ancient Aztec tools and clothing. He and the other students were checking out the exhibits, with Andy and Frankie admiring statues of famous monster figures, Cleo and Deuce looking at cases full of old jewellery, (which Deuce had to keep pointing out were not for sale) and Lagoona and Ghoulia dragging their boyfriends off to look at some science exhibits.

"For a bunch of monsters who lived in the jungle, they made some pretty snazzy outfits."

Abbey looked at Heath. "Am impressed Heath. I did not think you would be so interested in all this."

"Hey, I can appreciate something with a nice form." Heath's gaze turned to a statue of a rather voluptulous harpy warrior. "Especially a form like that. Yowza!" Flames shot out from his hair.

Abbey wafted the flames away. "Calm yourself Heath. Don't want to set any of this stuff on fire. Museum would charge us."

Heath smoothed back his hair and grinned at her. "Don't worry babe, you know I only hold a flame for you."

"Do not call me babe." Abbey intoned, but with a smile on her face.

Clawdeen watched the two, fascinated and somewhat charmed by how they interacted. Abbey and Heath had developed a strange relationship even since the two had met, but she had to admit, it somehow worked.

"Clawdeen?" A french accented voice spoke. She turned around to see Catrine approach.

"Hey, you made it!"

"I would not miss this for the world. Thank you for inviting me." Catrine gazed at some portraits on a far wall. "Ooh, this art is magnifique! I love Moanet art."

"I thought you might." Clawdeen grinned, pleased to see her friend enjoying herself.

"Clawdeen?" A voice with a slight Romanian accent spoke up behind her. She turned around to see a tall, pale vampire with platinum blonde hair.

"Thad?" She blinked at the sight of the boy she had dated briefly after the Halloween adventure last year. "What are you doing here?"

"I got an invite, and I was in the area." Thad looked her over. "Wow, you look stunning."

"Umm, thanks. Nice seeing you again." Clawdeen turned to join Catrine at the portraits. To her annoyance however, Thad sidled up next to her.

"These are some wonderful pieces of art." He said, staring hopefully at her the whole time. "You know, I have an uncle who owns a gallery in Portland. I would be happy to take you there if you're interested.

"Nah, I'm not really into all these fancy portraits. Fashion designs are more my thing." Clawdeen shrugged. "But I'm sure Catrine here would love to visit."

Catrine clasped her hands together. "Oh yes, I've heard much about the Portland art scene."

"Yeah... sure." Thad replied somewhat half-heartedly

Clawdeen followed Catrine as she moved further down the wall to look at more artworks, and Thad still stuck to her side.

"So um.." He began nervously. "I've been out of the country for a while... visiting relatives in Romania and all. But I'd love to catch up on what's been happening around here. I heard some gossip about ghosts from another dimension attacking the school..."

Clawdeen faced him and raised her hand in front of his face. "Lemme just stop you there Thad. I know you're just trying to be nice, but I'm not interested in dating you, or anyone else right now."

Thad looked surprised. "R-really?... I thought we had really hit it off last year."

"Yeah, the first date was nice." Clawdeen frowned. "But after that we were a disaster. You were bored when I talked about my interests, I didn't like the plays you took me to.. plus I'm still pissed off that you lied to me about your 'condition'. Putting glitter on your skin to make you sparkle, really?"

"Okay, I admit that was stupid." Thad sighed. "I thought the 'Twilight' look would make me irresistible. But it wasn't all bad, right?"

Clawdeen shook her head. "I'm sorry Thad. It's not gonna happen."

Thad looked confused. "If that's how you feel, I understand... but I thought you needed a date for this evening."

"A date? Where did you get that idea?"

"From Draculaura. She said you didn't have a companion for the gala, and asked if I was available.."

"She did WHAT?!" Clawdeen near shrieked.

* * *

Draculaura gazed up at set of 18th Century Dresses, stored in a glass display case. They were really beautiful designs, and she was certain she had a few similar outfits way in the back of her closet. Maybe she could pull them out and donate them to the museum.

Clawd approached her, holding two plates full of food from the buffet.

"Here you go, nabbed most of the cruelslaw sandwiches." He handed one to her.

"Thanks sweetie." She took a bite of a sandwich and returned to the display. "Look at these, they're all outfits and items from nobles that attended the Vampire Court back in the day. I'd forgotten just how intricate this stuff was."

"Yeah, it's pretty nice." Clawd agreed. He then spotted a pair of unusual outfits, consisting of old fashioned shorts and jerseys with numbers on them. "Are those athletic outfits?"

"I think so.." Draculaura checked a label next to them. "These are outfits from America's first Monsterolympic team, back in 1908."

"They had athletes even back then, huh?" Clawd spoke softly, thinking of something else. He looked at his ghoulfriend. "Hey listen, could we talk? I really want to go to Screeattle sometime this month."

"Go to Screeattle? It's kind of a long drive, unless we take a plane. But sure, that sounds like a fun day out." Draculaura replied happily.

"It wouldn't really be a day out, mostly." Clawd rubbed the back of his head. "I've been reading up on Screeattle University's classes. They have a great sports program, plus courses in business and sports medicine. I think it's where I want to go to college."

R..really?" Draculaura squeaked. Why was he bringing this up again?

"I really want to check it out before I make a definite choice, so I thought maybe we could take a trip out there with my family."

Anxiety rose within her. She didn't want to think about him leaving for college, not now.

She looked around for a distraction, and zeroed in on the raw steak sandwich Clawd was holding.

"It's only about two hours or so by plane, so we could grab a flight from the scareport, get there and still have time for a little frightseeing..." He rose the sandwich toward his mouth.

"Clawd!" She snatched the sandwich from his hand and slammed it down on his plate. "What have I told you? Don't put the 'eat' in meat! You know that stuff is bad for you."

Clawd stared at her for several moments, his look of astonishment turning into one of anger. "Wha.. are you serious?!"

"I was just trying to.."

"I know what you were trying to do. But I'm not a vegan, Laura. I like eating meat, I need to eat it. I don't know why you can't accept that."

"I do!" Draculaura protested. "I'm just trying to help you eat healthier."

"I already eat pretty healthily. I'm a carnivore, I need meat in my diet." Clawd frowned, crossing his arms. "I don't get on your case to drink blood when you don't want to, why can't you do the same with me and veggies?"

"That's.. that's different! I have reasons for not drinking blood, you know that." Draculaura glared at him, trying to hold down the anxious feeling in her belly. "Look, I'm sorry. You're right, I shouldn't have taken your food." She took his hand and tried to pull him toward her. "Come on, lets go see the other exhibits."

"You're doing it again." He pulled his hand away.

"Doing what?"

"Changing the subject. You do it every time I bring up something important."

"Oh, when have I done that?" Laura scowled, hands on her hips.

"Lots of times! You've distracted me with tennis balls whenever I've tried to talk to you about our relationship, and now you won't discuss visiting the University with me. If you don't want to go with me, fine, but can we at least discuss what we're going to do once the school year ends?"

"Why do we have to?" Draculaura retorted. "We've got months before we have to think about stuff like that, why can't we just enjoy the rest of our time at school? I don't want to think about us being apart."

"Me neither, but we can't just put it off! I'm graduating at the end of term, and you're graduating in little over a year. We have to start thinking about what we're gonna do with the rest of our unlives." Clawd replied. "I want to try to make it as a pro athlete. What do you want to do?"

"I... I..." She couldn't think of anything to say. She really didn't know what to do, didn't want to consider what life would be like after graduation, not being able to see her friends or Clawd everyday...

"Why... why do we have to leave Salem at all?" It was the only answer she could think to say. "I mean, we could just stay here after graduation. We could find jobs we like here. Heck, we wouldn't even need to find jobs. I could buy us a place to live together."

She took his hand, hoping she was convincing him. "We wouldn't need to worry about anything at all. We could stay together as long as we want."

He looked at her, astonished at her words. He pulled his hand out of her grasp.

"And do what? Mooch about on your dad's dime? Work for my dad's construction firm or my mom's inn, both jobs I am totally not interested in?!" He threw up his hands. "I love Salem, but I don't want to stay here all my life. I want to make something of myself, go out in the world and see what I can do. . And after all the time we've been together, you think I would just want to never change?"

He looked at her with disappointment. "I love you Laura, but... damn, you're so selfish sometimes."

She gasped. He had never said anything so hurtful to her before. "Clawd.. I..."

He raised his hands. "I.. can't talk to you right now." He stepped away, walking back into the crowds.

"Clawd! I didn't mean.." She stood, stunned by his words. She couldn't believe he would say that to her.

"Draculaura.." She turned around to see Frankie, Cleo, Lagoona and Abbey standing nearby.

"Oh my ghoul, did you see that?!" She exclaimed.

"Yeah, we heard it as well." Frankie frowned at her. "And I can't say I blame him. You were way out of line there."

"What? No I wasn't!"

"He's trying to talk to you about his future plans, and you won't hear him out." Frankie crossed her arms. "All you seem to care about is making him stay in Salem with you."

"Well... I just... I wasn't sure.." Draculaura stammered.

"And it's not the first time you've been selfish toward him either." Cleo spoke up.

"Oh, when have I been selfish?"

"Oh I dunno, how about before your 1600th birthday when he gave you that homemade stepladder?" Lagoona pointed at her. "I know if was a naff gift, but you didn't have to act like he was insulting you."

"I.. I know I overreacted a bit. But I thought he was insinuating I was short."

Abbey glared at her. "You ARE short, dummy! Sorry to point that out, but is true. Does not give you right to yell at people trying to help."

"And what about when Elissabat was posing as a student here? You made Clawd dress up as her and he got mobbed by her fans." Frankie said.

"Hey, that was his fault! He's the one that blabbed that Elissabat was attending the school."

"Only after YOU blabbed to him first. Shouldn't you have posed as Elissabat, especially since you kinda look right her?"

"Speaking of Elissabat... how come you never called Clawd once during that whole adventure to find the Vampire Queen?" Cleo asked.

"I was worried about him. I thought calling him might put him in danger."

"In danger? From who? That idiot Lord Stoker and his pea-brained sidekick?" Cleo sneered. "I was texting Deuce daily the whole time. He was worried, but I assured him we would be alright. You couldn't extend the same courtesy to Clawd?"

"Alright, maybe I do take him for granted sometimes." Draculaura retorted, narrowing her eyes in anger. She wasn't going to just stand there and take this. "But it's not like you ghouls haven't done it with your guys sometimes."

She pointed at Cleo, Lagoona and Frankie in turn. "You're always bossing Deuce around, you act like a lunatic whenever Gil breaths near another ghoul, and don't get me started on you and your fan club."

The ghouls all gasped, surprised to hear Draculaura speaking so harshly for once.

"Hey! I'm not gonna deny we've treated our fellas poorly in the past, but at least we realise when we've done wrong and try to do better by them." Lagoona frowned. "But you always seem to take Clawd for granted. When was the last time you two really talked about your relationship?

Draculaura hesitated for a long time before she answered. "Well.. not all that often.. but that's a good thing, right? If we're not arguing all the time, we must be doing okay."

She crossed her arms and smiled proudly. "Trust me, when it comes to relationships, I know what I'm doing."

"DRACULAURA!" Several guests turned to see Clawdeen storming toward the group, Ghoulia and Catrine trailing behind her.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" She marched right toward Draculaura and got in her face. "You set me up on a date with Thad?!"

"Umm... yeah. I thought you'd like to meet him again.."

"Not as a date! Where did you even get the idea I even wanted a date?! I just wanted to enjoy the museum!"

"I... I'm sorry." Draculaura whimpered. "I didn't want you to be without someone for the event..."

"Exactly! YOU wanted this, not me!" Clawdeen snarled. "You didn't even consider talking to me about it, did you?. No, you just decided on your own! I don't care if you are my friend, you have no right to dictate my social life!"

Draculaura reeled back. "I.. I'm sorry.."

"Are you really? Because I wonder sometimes!" Clawdeen seethed. "You are always acting so immature, and then when we call you on it, you just burst into tears and expect everyone to feel sorry for you. We're not kids anymore, we're almost seniors! Hell, you're a senior several times over. It is way past time for you to grow the hell up and stop pulling crap like this!"

"Clawdeen... I... I.." Draculaura stammered, tears in her eyes.

"Save it, I don't want to hear it!" Clawdeen turned and stomped away.

Draculaura stood shock still, unable to believe her best friend had just yelled at her.

She slowly turned to the rest of the ghouls, who were all glaring at her with disappointment.

"Ghouls... I was just trying to help. You know that, right?"

Cleo narrowed her eyes. "She's right, you really can be too immature sometimes. What were you thinking with that little stunt?"

"And after I told you not to set Clawdeen up with someone." Frankie frowned. "That was really inconsiderate."

"Well excuse me for trying to help my friend!" Draculaura spat back, trying to hold back her tears. "I know I mess up sometimes, but it's not like I'm trying to annoy people on purpose."

"We know, but you do sometimes. And it feels like you never try to learn from your mistakes." Frankie pointed out.

Draculaura snarled at her. "So I screwed up once or twice! I would think the least my friends could do is understand that I don't mean it. I thought being at Monster High meant accepting people's flaws."

"Having a flaw and having an attitude are completely different things." Cleo shot back. "And you have the attitude of a spoilt child who refuses to mature and take responsibility."

That was the last straw.

"I don't have to take this! I don't have an attitude! You lot have the the attitude! Of a bunch of jerks!" She nearly yelled. "If you can't stand me so much, then I'll just go away!"

She turned and walked away, shaking with anger.

"Draculaura, wait." Frankie reached out, but Cleo stopped her.

"Don't. Let her have her little hissy fit. We'll talk to her once she's calmed down."

Just then, a voice called out. "Ladies and gentlemonsters, our main presentation is about to begin. Please turn your attention to the stage."

The group started walking to the stage, Frankie keeping a concerned eye on Draculaura as she joined the crowd at the far end. She hoped that at the end of this night, they might be able to rekindle their friendship.

* * *

The stage in the central room now had several large objects covered in tarpaulins. Everyone turned their attention toward it as the museum curator, a goblin, stood at a podium.

"Hello ladies and gentlemonsters, and welcome to the opening of the Salem Museum. It's wonderful to see so many of you here tonight..."

Draculaura drowned out his voice, too focused on feeling angry. How could her friends be so mean over a little bit of poor judgement? Sure, she'd made some wrong assumptions, and gotten a little emotional, but she had genuinely been trying to help. There was no need for them to call her immature.

She glanced over to where the group was watching the speech. Frankie, Ghoulia and Abbey had their full attention on the stage. Cleo, Clawdeen and Lagoona only glanced at her and gave her dirty looks. Nearby, Clawd watched the stage with a sullen expression.

Draculaura huffed. Well, if they were going to give her the cold shoulder for a while, she might as well respond in kind.

She looked back to the stage, just in time to see Ramoanah step forward.

"... and to talk about some of the artefacts on display, I'd like to introduce one of our contributors and researchers, Ramoanah Vasile Dracula."

The curator stepped aside to let Ramoanah take the podium. Draculaura enthusiastically waved at her stepmother, who gave her a quick smile before continuing.

"Thank you so much. It's truly heartwarming to see so many of you here tonight, both residents of Salem and from all across the country. We've worked very hard to create the exhibitions, and we hope that everyone who visits here will leave a little more enlightened about the vast history about our many races."

"And one aspect of that history is our time in war and combat. While monster kind has generally tried to avoid conflict for the most part, it's a sad fact that war is sometimes unavoidable. From wars between races such as the great Night War between vampires and werewolves centuries ago, to conflicts between humans which have affected and sometimes threatened our kind. Yet in those times, many warriors and soldiers have stepped forward to help protect our way of life, often serving the armies of their time, sometimes discreetly assisting humans. With our War Memorial exhibit, we hope to honour those who have fought on our behalf, and teach a new generation about those turbulent times."

The crowd applauded. Ramoanah then stepped over to a large rectangular shape, hidden under a cloth.

"As part of the exhibit, we are honoured to reveal a couple of pieces from the Ottoman War, one of the somewhat lesser known of monster conflicts. While primarily a conflict between the humans of Romania and the Ottoman empire, the conflict also saw the monster nations of Turkey, led by then King Kallikantzaros , attempt to use the fighting among the humans to secretly invade Europe. With two armies vying for control of the country, many of the country's monster leaders, including our own Lord Dracula, decided to make a temporary alliance to the human armies to bolster their forces and protect all the people of Romania, living and undead. Although the alliance was not a permanent one, it did play a crucial part of repelling the Turkish invaders."

"There are plenty of written accounts and old stories about this war... as anyone who's sat through a dinner with my husband and the Vampire Court can attest.." There were a few laughs in the audience. "But actual artefacts from that time have been lost for centuries due to upheaval, crypt thieves, and other elements. But I am very happy to announce that our exhibit will contain several historical items from the Ottoman War, graciously donated to us by collectors, or recently discovered and restored by the Monster Scaritage Society."

She gestured toward the hidden object. "And we are delighted to show you a few pieces of this collection before they go on public display at the weekend. To begin, we have this stunning portrait, painted by the late master painter Bludwick von Clotter. This picture is a dramatic depiction of a turning point in the war, where the Romanian Vampire army made a daring attack on the Ottoman forces in the dead of night, just as they were making a push into Romania."

With a flourish, she pulled off the cover, revealing an huge oil painting. It showed an army of vampires, clad in red and black armour and bearing the coat of arms of Romania, boldly fighting their way through vampires and other monsters in brightly coloured armour. Some battled other opponents with swords, others aimed bows at distant foes. Fallen soldiers from both sides lay defeated and bleeding on the ground. The crowd gasped in awe.

Draculaura had to admit, it really was a stunning picture. The brushstrokes, the details... it looked so lifelike. Maybe a little too lifelike, she felt a bit squeamish at the sight of the blood from the soldier's wounds. She scanned the picture, taking in all the details...

Then she stopped as she noticed one of the soldiers in the foreground. It was a female vampire, clad in armour which seemed custom made to fit her short stature. She wore no helmet, allowing her long dark hair to stream dramatically down her back in a long ponytail. She held a flag bearing the coat of arms in one hand, while the other swung a sword to knock down an advancing foe. Her face was etched in a yell of triumph. She looked very familiar to her...

She froze, her eyes locked on the female soldier's face. On her left cheek was a small heart-shaped birthmark.

Just like hers.

Suddenly, it flashed in her head. A memory she thought long forgotten.

S _he swung her sword, expertly aiming the edge toward the necks of the two Turkish soldiers attempting to run her through. They never got the chance before she sliced open their necks. They fell to the ground, blood splattering her armour._

 _She paid them no heed, instead taking a moment to survey the battle around her. Soldiers clashed with each other, the screams of combat and the scent of blood and sweat in the air. The Turks were putting up a strong defense, but they were still woefully outmatched by the armies of Romania. One last push, and the battle would be theirs._

 _She spotted a flag on the ground, dropped by a fallen flagbearer. and picked it up with her free hand._

 _"Come on men!" She screamed as loud as she could to her fellow soldiers, holding the flag aloft. "Let's drive these bastards out of our land once and for all!"_

 _She heard cheers in response. As the soldiers resumed their advance, she charged forward toward another group of Turks..._

Draculaura's hands covered her mouth as she fought against the urge to vomit.

Why... why was she remembering that battle so vividly? She hadn't thought about that time for centuries.

"Draculaura?" She turned around to see Frankie standing by her, her other friends nearby. Frankie was looking back and forth at her and the painting.

"Why... does that ghoul in the picture look so much like you?"

"What?" Draculaura responded defensively. "What do you mean? She looks nothing like me!"

Clawdeen raised an eyebrow. "You can't see it? She's got the same birthmark and everything."

"Why are you in a painting of a battle?" Lagoona asked.

"I... I don't know!" Draculaura hissed. "Maybe it's a coincidence! Maybe the artist was playing some kind of joke!"

"Are you okay?" Clawdeen asked. "You're shaking."

Draculaura tried to remain steady, fear rising withing her. "I'm fine, really."

"Then why are you acting like this? Is it the painting?" Cleo asked.

"Just... just leave me alone.." Draculaura stammered. She wanted to run away, escape her friend's questioning gazes. But she didn't want to cause a scene...

"And finally.." Ramoanah continued, not noticing her stepdaughter's behaviour. "We have this unique relic dating back to 1458, found buried in a ditch in Romania, and painstakingly cleaned and restored by our historians."

The crowd watched the stage to see another cloth covered object wheeled onto the stage by an assistant. Draculaura followed their gaze, grateful for a distraction from the painting.

The cloth was removed, revealing a gleaming sword, held upright on a plinth. Its blade was spotless silver, while the hilt was rose-gold coloured and shaped like a pair of bat's wings. A heart shaped ruby was set in the middle of the hilt.

"We have little to no information on this sword, other than it is clearly a one of a kind weapon, no doubt handcrafted and commissioned by its original owner. It has the name 'Regina Inima' engraved on it, which means 'Queen's Heart'..."

Draculaura heard nothing. The world around her was gone as she focused on the sword. The face turned paler than usual.

"No.. it can't be..."

It wasn't just any sword. It was THE sword. HER sword.

Unbidden memories began to flash before her eyes.

 _Sparring against her father, trying desperately to get a hit in and prove herself.._

 _Cutting down an enemy, and taking a quick lick of the blood on her sword before moving on to the next kill..._

 _Standing over a map of Romania with her father and his knights in the castle war room.._

 _Running a soldier through his chest with her sword.._

 _Spending time discussing plans for her father's birthday with one of the castle's few human servants.._

 _Marching along with her fellow soldiers across a sea of fallen enemies, occasionally pausing to drink the blood of a still living soldier.._

 _Arguing with Elissabat about something.._

 _Standing in the middle of a battleground, the bodies of her slain comrades all around her.._

 _Stumbling around, dying of thirst, desperately trying to find someone to drink from..._

 _The terrified gaze of a young woman, staring at her as she took her last gasps of breath.._

 _"Laura... wh.. why?"_

"Draculaura?" Frankie was alarmed by how pale her friend had suddenly become. "What's the matter?"

"No.." Draculaura clutched her head. The memories... they wouldn't stop coming. " No... NOOOOOOO!"

She stumbled backwards, trying to get away. But then, something within her snapped.

She fell to the ground.

Ramoanah froze in horror. "Oh my God! Laura!" She ran off the stage toward her stepdaughter, where her friends were already gathered around her, trying to revive her.

"Draculaura! Come on ghoul, wake up!" Clawdeen pleaded, shaking Draculaura's shoulders gently while Abbey supported her.

But Draculaura made no attempt to awaken. It seemed the small vampire was dead to the world.

END OF CHAPTER 1

* * *

 **Notes**

 _For those wondering who Ramoanah is, she is Draculaura's stepmother, who married her father in the Monster High Diaries book, Draculaura and the New Stepmomster._


	2. Revelations

Monster High: Black and Pink

Monster High is copyright of Mattel

 _Yeah, it's been a while since I've updated this story. Life has gotten in way, as usual, and I honestly did not realise how long it had been since I posted the first chapter._

 _But if you've been waiting, I thank you for your patience, and hope you enjoy this latest chapter._

* * *

After Draculaura collapsed, everything seemed to go by in a blur for Frankie. Someone had called an ambulance, two paramedic monsters had shown up and taken Draculaura away, and she and her friends had immediately rushed to the nearest vehicle to head to the hospital.

Now she, her friends, Clawd and Ramoanah were sitting in a waiting room, and time seemed to be going slower than usual. Only ten minutes had passed since her father had taken Draculaura into an emergency room, yet it seemed like hours.

She observed the group. Everyone was either staring into space or watching the door anxiously for any sign of an answer from the doctors, especially Clawdeen and Clawd. Spectra was typing something into a tablet, and Ramoanah was speaking into her phone.

"..I understand. I'll let you know if anything happens, just please, get here as soon as you can... I love you too." Ramoanah hung up, a sad sigh escaping her lips.

"Were you talking to Draculaura's father?" Frankie asked.

Ramoanah nodded. "He's trying to get here as soon as he can, but a storm has delayed all flights out of Antarctica. Add the long trip, and it'll be two days before he gets here."

Sensing her worry, Frankie stepped closer and patted her shoulder. "Don't worry, my dad's one of the best doctors in the monster world. If anyone can help bring her back, he can."

"I'm sure he will. Draco speaks very highly of him." Ramoanah smiled weakly. "I'm just praying she only fainted from a lack of blood or something."

Clawd jumped to his feet and started pacing around. "Auuugh! This is taking forever! Doesn't anyone know what's happening to her?"

Clawdeen got up and held his shoulder to stop him. "Easy, bro. Getting yourself worked up isn't going to help anyone."

Clawd glared at her for a moment, but the anger left him, and he slumped down. "Sorry. It's just... dammit, I feel like this is my fault. I had that argument with her.. what if I stressed her so much she fainted, or something?"

"Hey, we were all a little harsh with her tonight." Clawdeen explained. "She was upset, but she was in good health... until she saw that painting, and the sword at the presentation."

Ramoanah blinked. "You mean... she was alright until she saw that sword? I don't understand."

Cleo looked thoughtful. "Maybe the sword or the painting had some kind of curse on it? My father has to deal with cursed items quite often in his line of work."

"Impossible. The museum hires a whole team of witches and wizards to look over any items that go on display. If they had a curse on them, they would have spotted them immediately."

"Well something affected her." Lagoona spoke up. "She looked utterly terrified before she collapsed."

"All we can do is wait until Dad comes back." Frankie sighed.

They lasped into an uncomfortable silence. A few moments later, it was broken by the sound of several footsteps approaching the door. Everyone turned to see who was arriving, hoping it was news about Draculaura's condition.

Instead, a vampire ghoul with long dark hair entered, dressed in a purple and black casual outfit. Everyone was surprised when they recognised it was Elissabat, the Vampire Queen.

She was accompanied by two burly vampires in dark suits, each with a collapsible stake and a gun holstered to their belts, and a tall, female vampire with curly red hair. Judging from the business suit she wore, they assumed she was some kind of personal assistant.

Upon seeing her, Ramoanah stood up and bowed to her. "Your Majesty..."

Elissabat smiled at her. "Please Ramoanah, there is no need for formality. We're all here as friends."

"It's nice to see you again." Clawdeen greeted. "But what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in Transylvania?"

"I was in Screeattle for a diplomatic function." Elissabat replied. "As soon as Cleo contacted me, I got the first plane here."

"Well, we royals must stick together." Cleo smiled proudly.

"So what happened exactly? I heard she collapsed."

"We're not sure." Frankie answered. "We had an argument and she was pretty upset with us, but she seemed fine. Then she looked at this portrait in Ramoanah's presentation and started panicking."

"And that painting was weird. There was a ghoul in it who looked exactly like her." Clawdeen added.

"Really.." Elissabat suddenly looked alarmed.

"Yeah, and then she saw this old sword, and that's when she fainted." Lagoona finished.

"Wh.. what did this sword look like?" Elissabat asked, suddenly nervous.

"Ooh, I took some pictures!" Spectra floated over, flicking through the pictures on her iCoffin. She found a photo of the sword and held it up to Elissabat.

She gasped, her face turning pale. "My god... _Regina Inima_..."

"You've seen that sword somewhere before?" Lagoona asked.

"This... this is Draculaura's sword!" Elissabat replied, still staring at the picture in shock.

Everyone stared at her, confused. "What? Why would Draculaura have a sword?"

Elissabat looked at them, surprised. "You mean she's never told you?... No.. no of course she wouldn't have..."

She turned to her assistant. "Victoria, will you and the boys wait outside? I need to speak to these people privately."

"Of course, your Majesty." Victoria beckoned the two guards to follow her, and they left the room.

Elissabat faced the group. "What I am about to tell you must not leave this room. It is something Laura has trusted only to me and her father. But given the circumstances, I feel I have to let you know."

"Know what? What the hell is with this sword?!" Clawd demanded.

Elissabat took a deep breath. "That sword belonged to Laura, when she was a soldier in the Romanian Vampire Army."

Everyone stared at her as if she'd just told a bad joke.

"What?" Cleo deadpanned.

"No, really. During the Ottoman War, Draculaura convinced her father to let her join the Vampire Army. She mainly served in defensive lines and scouting, but..."

"Seriously?!" Spectra exclaimed. She held up her phone again and brought up a photo of the battle portrait. "So this ghoul in the picture.. this is actually Draculaura?!"

"Yes, it is. I seriously forgot Von Clotter painted that scene..."

"Hold the hell up!" Clawdeen jumped to her feet, glaring at Elissabat. "This... this is a joke right? You don't seriously expect us to believe that Draculaura was some kind of soldier, do you?"

"She's one of the sweetest monsters I've ever met." Frankie joined in. "She wouldn't hurt a fly. Heck, I'm not even sure she could even physically hurt a fly, she's that tiny."

"And the blood, she'd faint away at the sight of blood on a battlefield." Cleo pointed out.

Elissabat sighed deeply. "I know it's hard to believe, knowing her as you do in this current time. But back in 1460, Draculaura had no problem with drinking blood, and volunteered to fight in her father's army."

"But... but why?" Frankie asked.

"She wanted to serve and protect her homeland. And she had taken some training in sword fighting from her father, so she was well prepared to fight."

The group mulled on this, still in complete surprise. Cleo turned to Ramoanah. "Did you know about this?"

"No, never. Draco told me that Laura had gone through some troubling times in the old country, that's why she didn't like blood. And he asked that I didn't bring it up, because it might upset her. I respected his wishes for her sake. But I never imagined that she was some kind of soldier, or that she had... killed."

The room went even more silent after that statement. The idea that Draculaura had actually killed people...

"This... this sounds so unreal." Frankie whispered.

Abbey shook her head. "I do not understand. If Draculaura was once mighty vampire warrior like you say, then why is she always fainting like weak baby goat whenever she sees blood?"

"Yeah, and why has she never mentioned any of this to us?" Frankie asked.

"Well, to be fair, it's not exactly a great conversation starter." Cleo shrugged. "Mentioning that you used to stab people for a living is a bit of a mood killer."

"I think it was regret as much as anything else." Elissabat replied. "After the war ended, Draculaura pretty much gave up the soldier life, and spent more time being a lady and accompanying her father at the Vampire Court. She never wanted to talk about her time in the army, or what happened to her..."

Frankie blinked as she caught that. "Wait, what does that mean? Did something happen to her?"

Elissabat took a long pause before answering. "You have to understand. When she was in the army, Laura was every inch a soldier. Brave, dedicated, even a bit ruthless. She became quite well known on the battlefield. She even got a nickname. ' _Dragomic_ ', the Little Dragon. She worked hard, and even rose to the rank of Second Lieutenant. She could have easily become a captain if she stuck to it. But then one day..."

She closed her eyes as she remembered. "It was in the final days of the Ottoman War. Laura and her unit went on a mission to eliminate remnants of the Turkish army who were still causing trouble along the border. She was gone for four days, and during that time.. her unit was caught in a surprise attack."

Everyone's eyes widened.

"I don't know the full details of what happened, but when soldiers went to find them, they discovered that nearly the entire unit had been wiped out. Only a few soldiers had survived, including Laura. But she wasn't found until a couple of days later."

She shuddered. "I can never forget how she looked when they brought her in. Starving, a look of fear in her eyes... she locked herself in her room for several days, refusing to accept any blood from the doctors until she absolutely needed it. And when she finally came out, and I saw her for the first time... she was completely different."

"How so?"

"For one thing, she became utterly terrified of blood. She would panic and run away whenever she was near blood, and refused to hunt like she used too. It took days before her father convinced her to drink enough to keep herself healthy, and even then she would only take blood that had been freely offered by the humans who lived on her father's land."

"Damn.." Clawdeen breathed, wondering how hard it would have been for a vampire to not live on blood centuries ago. At least today, vampires could buy bags of human and animal blood to feed on, and vitamins to sustain themselves if they didn't want to take blood. How did Draculaura cope without those?

"But even stranger than that, was how her personality changed." Elissabat continued.

"How so?"

"Well... Laura has always one of the sweetest, kindest people I've ever met, even after the tragedy of losing her mother. She would treat everyone with respect, including the servants and her father's vassals, and she could always bring some cheer on even the darker days. When she joined her father's army and started raising up the ranks, she started to change somewhat. She became more serious, more responsible. She could be harsh when someone disagreed with her... and once she became a lieutenant, she became... rather arrogant."

"Draculaura, arrogant?!" Lagoona's eyebrows raised. "I have a hard time believing that."

"I couldn't believe she could act like that at the time myself. But I guess war changes people." Elissabat sighed. "But after the war ended, she became more like how she was before... almost too much."

"What do you mean by that?"

"She became more like how you know her today. More ladylike, more innocent... more childlike. She walked away from her military career and became more of a social butterfly. It earned her mockery from her former comrades, but she seemed to ignore it, and would never speak of her time in the war."

She looked away sadly. "At the time, I assumed she was just trying to put on a cheerful face while she tried to get back to a normal life. But as the years went on, that childish persona she put on never seemed to go away. She would say she was alright, but I had the feeling that there was more behind the surface."

She let out a sigh of annoyance. "Unfortunately, before I got the chance to look more into it, Queen Ravenna passed away from a blood disease, and I was made one of the favourites to take her place as Queen. That was when Lord Stoker began his plans to control the Vampire Court, and I began my exile to England. I didn't see Laura again until you all found me in Hauntlywood. And I was surprised as anyone to see that she hadn't changed much since I saw her last."

"So, has this got something to do with why she collapsed?" Frankie asked.

"I would assume so. I imagine seeing the past she tried so hard to forget up on a wall for anyone to see would be a supreme shock to her."

They heard heavy footsteps approaching. Frankie's father, Viktor Stein entered the room, a look of worry on his large face.

"Dad! How is she?" Frankie asked eagerly.

Viktor took in everyone's expectant looks, and sighed sadly. "Well, she's stable right now, but..."

"What? What's wrong with her?"

"Well... she's in some kind of coma."

Ramoanah gasped, her face one of pure terror.

* * *

Viktor led the group into one of the hospital's private rooms. There, laying still in a bed, dressed in a hospital gown, was Draculaura. Save for the IV full of blood connected to her arm, and the electrodes taped to her head leading to a monitor next to the bed, she looked as if she was just asleep.

The ghouls stared at her, unsettled at the sight of their usually hyperactive and vivacious friend now being as still as a corpse.

"I don't understand, she seemed fine the last time I saw her." Remoanah spoke, distraught. She looked at Viktor. "How did this happen?"

"We're still not sure. Physically, she's in good health, save for being somewhat anemic. But she's been like that ever since I've known her and her father." Viktor replied. "There's no sort of illness or physical trauma which could have caused this. Her mental state, however, is what's worrying us."

He indicated the monitor, which displayed a graph on which a jagged line kept spiking up and down.

"This monitors her brain activity. As you can see, it seems fairly standard for someone in a comatose or unconscious state. But from time to time there's a severe spike, as if she's going through some kind of stress."

"Can't you wake her up?" Ramoanah demanded.

"We've tried, but she's not responding to any stimuli. It's almost as if she's going through a hibernation."

The ghouls all gasped at that statement. They all knew from biology class how long a vampire hibernation could last. Decades, if not centuries.

"She's... she's not going to be like that forever, is she?" Clawdeen asked nervously.

Viktor shook his head. "Honestly, I don't know. Until we know more about what's happening to her, all we can do is keep her stable and hope that she wakes up."

Frankie watched as Clawd stepped closer to Draculaura's bed, taking her hand in his. "Laura... come on, wake up ghoul. You're worrying us out here."

There was no response. The look of anguish on Clawd's face was heartbreaking.

"Is.. is it okay if we stay here with her?" He asked Viktor.

" I'm afraid only close family are allowed to stay overnight. But don't worry, we've got nurses here to watch over her all night. If anything happens, we'll let you know."

The ghouls and Clawd were disappointed, but nodded in understanding.

They spent a few more minutes watching their friend while Ramoanah discussed something with Viktor. Eventually, but reluctantly, all of them started on their way home.

Frankie was the last one in the room, watching as Clawdeen helped lead a distraught Clawd out.

She turned to Draculaura, placing her hand on top of hers.

"We'll come back later Draculaura, I promise. Until then... please come back to us."

She watched Draculaura's face for any reaction, but there was none. Sighing, she followed the others.

* * *

Normally, Frankie enjoyed waking up on a Saturday, knowing that she had the whole day free to hang with her friends and do whatever they liked.

But today, all she could feel was sadness. Her mind was on Draculaura, laying still in the hospital, possibly never waking up. The thought of never speaking to her again was more frightening than anything she'd felt in a long time. She wanted her friend back, not just so she could know that she was safe and sound...

But also because she had a lot of questions to ask her. Like why had she never told her closest friends about her past as a solder. Why had she done something so violent, so opposed to the kind and sweet personality she had? Was the Draculaura she had known since she joined Monster High just some kind of facade?

Watzit hopped onto the bed to greet her, and she managed a smile as she cuddled her pet. She could hear movement downstairs, suggesting both her parents were up. She disconnected her charging cables and made her way to her bathroom.

Washed and dressed, she headed downstairs to the kitchen. Her mother was cooking something on the stove, while her father sat at the table, string wearily at a notebook.

"Good morning sweetheart." Viveka noticed the tired look in Frankie's eyes. "Did you sleep well?"

"Not really. I was worried about Laura all night." She sat down next to her father. "How was she? Is there any change?"

Viktor shook his head. "No, no change since last night. She hasn't gotten any worse at least, though that's a small comfort."

Frankie nodded. "Do you think you'll be able to wake her up?"

Viktor moved closer and wrapped a huge arm around her shoulders. "I promise you, I'm going to do everything I can to bring her back. In fact, I've called in a couple of experts from other hospitals to assess the situation. Hopefully, they might shed some light on what's wrong with her."

"Do you think... it has anything to do with her past?"

"What do you mean?"

Frankie swallowed, unsure if she should even be repeating this to anyone. But if it could help her father help Draculaura...

"You know how Draculaura freaked out when she saw that painting and that sword at the museum?"

"Yes, her stepmother explained that to us."

"That sword.. it used to belong to her. She.. she used to fight in an army in Romania hundreds of years ago. She never said anything about it.. until she saw that sword."

Her father took this in, his eyebrows raising in slight surprise. "Hmm... that might explain the coma. Having an old memory like that be revealed would be a severe shock to the system to anyone.."

Frankie blinked. "I thought you would be a bit more surprised by this."

"Well, I had an inkling that Laura had gone through some kind of traumatic experience in the past, the first time her father introduced me to her and asked about alternatives for drinking blood. The way she shied away so vehemently from blood, it told me something had happened to her to want to avoid it. But per her father's request, I didn't delve further for her sake."

"Uggh! It's like everyone knows about this except me." Frankie scowled, clenching her fists. "I don't understand this!"

"What do you mean?" Her mother asked, joining them at the table.

"I'm one of Laura's closest friends, have been ever since I joined Monster High. Clawdeen, Cleo and Ghoulia have known her even longer than that. And in all that time, she's never told anyone about her being a soldier!"

"Frankie, she has a right to keep parts of her life private, just like anyone else." Viveka reminded.

"I know, but... this is huge! I mean she's..." She struggled to get the words out. "..fought in battles and kil.. stabbed people. I would have never imagined that she could even do such a thing."

She threw up her hands. "And now.. I don't know what to think. Laura is one of the kindest, sweetest people I've ever met. I can't get my head around her... killing people."

Her father sidled closer to her. "You know, I felt somewhat the same way when I first met Laura's father. During my travels, I'd heard countless stories and legends about his time as a warrior, about how he had ruled Dacia and cut down hundreds of opponents who got in his way. Everyone shuddered at the mention of his name. Then I actually met him for the first time, and I was surprised by how friendly and open-minded he was. To this day, I'm proud to call him one of my friends."

"But... he killed people! Doesn't that bother you?"

"It did at first. But then we talked about his past, his time as a military leader, and I came to understand his motivations and reasons. He didn't fight in combat simply for the thrill of it or because he enjoyed killing others. He fought to protect his homeland and the people within it from others who would have likely conquered them and destroyed their way of life. I could relate, because in those dark days when we monsters were actively hunted by humans, I and other monsters often had to fight our way out of trouble, sometimes to stay alive."

Viktor paused for a moment, as if remembering something unpleasant, and Frankie noticed the sad look in his eyes, the look of someone who had experienced something truly terrible. Her mother had a similar look in her eyes. It reminded her of something she forgot easily, that her parents had been around far, far longer than most people believed, and had seen more than the average person had.

"Fighting and killing is never a good thing. It should really only ever be a last resort. But there's a huge difference between fighting to protect something, be it your own life or the lives of others, and fighting just because you want to hurt others." Viktor finished.

Frankie was quiet as she absorbed this. "I.. think I understand. You're saying that Draculaura was a soldier, because she was trying to protect others?"

"I would assume so. She certainly doesn't seem to be the type to hurt others for no reason."

Frankie managed a smile. "Yeah, that sounds like her. Still... I don't understand why she wouldn't tell us. If she was fighting for a good cause, wouldn't that be something to be proud of? Why hide it?

Viveka sat next to her. "Well, she must have had her reasons. We all have some event in our lives we would rather forget. Your father and I can attest to that."

"What do you mean?"

Viktor and Viveka exchanged a look. Without a word, Viveka stood and moved into the living room. The sounds of hands rummaging through drawers could be heard. A few moments later, she returned, holding what appeared to be a photograph in her hand.

"Your father and I weren't always the most well behaved monsters on the block." She held up the photo for Frankie to see.

Frankie was confused. It looked like her parents, albeit slightly younger looking, but their outfits... her dad was wearing a leather jacket, a tight white shirt and jeans, and wore his hair in a quiff which gleamed with the shine of gallons of hairspray. Her mom was wearing a leather jacket over a cropped top and jeans which left nothing to the imagination, and her hair was styled in a pair of victory rolls which Operetta would have been jealous off. Both of them held cigarettes in their hands, and were leaning against a hot rod as they posed for the camera.

"No way! Is this really you?!

Her father nodded, a look of embarrassment on his face. "I'm afraid so. Back in the fifties, your mother and I.." He sighed. ".. were delinquents."

Frankie stared at them with disbelief. "Get out! You guys couldn't have been... I mean, you'e not the type."

"No, it's true. Back then, we did like to.. indulge in some bad behaviour." Viktor spoke sheepishly. "I was quite the bad boy. Instead of attending school, I was usually dossing about with a gang of louts in town, working on my car and entering in street races, and generally causing trouble and getting a rise out of people. I was more interested in girls, cigarettes and cars than science."

Frankie's jaw dropped. "Wha... what.. but... why?! Why would you act like that?"

"Well, it was partly because we wanted to be considered 'cool' by others." Viktor made question marks with his fingers.

"Yes, I was desperate for friends outside of Viktor at the time, and thought trying to to one of the cool kids would be my ticket to popularity." Viveka confessed.

"That... sounds familiar." Frankie murmured.

"But I think, for me at least, it was out of a sense of anger and resentment."

"Resentment?"

"It was a difficult time for monsters back in those days. People were less accepting of us thanks to a deluge of bad drive-in movies, and we didn't have all the freedoms and luxuries we take for granted today."

He sighed in remembrance. "I left the Old World to come to America hoping to become a scientist. But after I failed to get into a college due to being a monster, and putting up with scorn from fear from humans, I felt I didn't have a chance of becoming a scientist. So I lost my passion, and became a delinquent. I felt that there was no point in caring about the future, so I should just do whatever I wanted, regardless of the consequences. It got to the point were some of my friends, like Clawdeen and Draculaura's fathers, refused to have anything to do with me."

"But.. you gave that up, right?"

"Indeed. Unfortunately, it took getting run off the road by a rival gang during a drag race to open my eyes. I ended up crashing, even lost my head. But thankfully, your mother was able to get me to a hospital where I was stitched back together."

He smiled nostalgically. "I'm still here today thanks to the doctors who helped me, and the accident caused a few old friends to visit me and rekindle our friendships. It made me realise that I could do more with my life than just hang around and look cool, that I mattered. After that, I got back to my studies, took a few classes at Monster High, and eventually went to a monster college and became a doctor."

"And he encouraged me to go back to school and take up classes in gardening and gravescaping." Viveka added. "There's a silver lining in every bad situation.

Frankie raised an eyebrow. "So, how come I've never heard about this once since I've been born?"

"Well, aside from how embarrassing we looked back then.."

"I don't think it's embarrassing. You guys looked awesome."

"...Thanks. But we weren't very well behaved back then, and we did a few things we're not very proud of, and sorry we did. We don't really bring them up, because we worry they might reflect badly on us. I'm sure you've had a few instances like that."

Frankie winced, thinking back to her first days at school and her attempts to seduce Deuce before she learned he was dating Cleo.

"Yeah.. a few."

"And you don't like to bring it up again, right? Well, I'm sure Laura feels the same about her past. She didn't want it to colour your perception of her, so she never mentioned it."

"I.. think I understand." Frankie responded. "But me and all of my friends have done stupid and embarrassing things in the past, and we've all gotten past them somehow. What could Laura have done in the past to make her just... shut down like this?"

Viktor sighed. "I don't know sweetheart, but I'm sure she'll be happy to explain once she wakes up."

He got up. "Speaking of which, I'd better get down to the hospital. I've called in a few specialists to look Laura over. Hopefully, they'll have some answers."

"Can we come over and visit?" Frankie asked.

"We'll be busy all morning, but you're welcome to visit in the afternoon."

In the meantime.." Viveka gave her daughter a small hug. "Why don't you go to the Maul, spend some time with your friends. Right now, you ghouls need a little cheering up, and I'm sure Laura wouldn't want you moping about all day."

Frankie nodded. "Yeah.. I'm sure she wouldn't."

Viktor ruffled her hair. "Try not to worry, ok? She's in good hands. And I'll call you if there's any change in her condition."

Frankie hugged both her parents, feeling slightly happier. "Thanks guys."

* * *

Frankie's positive mood didn't last when she found her friends at the Maul's food court. Clawdeen, Cleo, Lagoona and Abbey were sitting at a table, staring glumly and picking at snacks. Ghoula and Spectra were typing away at their laptops, but with none of the usual speed and fever they usually demonstrated.

Spectra noticed her. "Oh, hey Frankie. Check it out, I put up a special post about Draculaura on my blog. It's been getting likes and messages from students all morning."

She held up her laptop to show a post on her blog, headed with a picture of a smiling Draculaura. Dozens of messages followed the post.

"Aside from a few insults and troll posts, all of them are wishing her a fast recovery." Spectra smiled.

Frankie managed a grin. "It's nice to know everyone's thinking of her."

She addressed the others. "How are you ghouls holding up?"

Clawdeen sighed. "Miserable. I suggested we do a little shopping to take our minds of things for a little while... but then we realised the Morgue and Spencers summer sale was starting today."

"We'd been preparing with Laura all week for that sale." Cleo sighed. "Planning how to grab the best deals before everyone else... it didn't seem right to go without her."

"It feels so... quiet without her." Abbey mused.

Frankie nodded in agreement as she joined them at the table. Ever since she'd met her, Laura had always been the liveliest member of their group. There was never a time when she wasn't telling them some story about an event at school or home, sharing ideas for school events or parties, or just chatting about the latest gossip. There were occasionally arguments, but she never failed to brighten up their meetings and bring a smile to everyone's faces.

Now without her, everything felt so still.

"Did your father give you any news about her condition?" Cleo asked.

"He's still looking into it. He said we can come over and visit this afternoon."

"Good. Maybe having us around might coax her back to reality."

"Uh-oh." They followed Clawdeen's gaze down the hall, where they noticed Gory, Toralei, Meowlody and Purrsephone walking toward them.

Lagoona's eyes narrowed. "If they start something, I swear I'm gonna kick their arses." She muttered.

"Will be happy to join you in booting their behinds." Abbey nodded.

"Hey ghouls." Toralei greeted them. "Is there any news on Draculaura?"

"At the moment, no." Cleo glared at them. "What is it to you?"

"Jeez, don't get your wraps in a twist." Toralei scowled. "We just wanted to say we're hoping she recovers."

"Really? Um... thanks."

Gory rolled her eyes. "Ugh, you really think we're that heartless?"

"Yeah! Draculaura might be a squealing pain in the butt a lot of the time, but even she doesn't deserve to be in a coma. I know I'd be upset if one of my friends was in that situation."

"She might be a embarrassment to all vampire kind.." Gory continued. "But she's still one of us. And I have great respect for her parents. I'm sure they're going through hell right now."

The ghouls lowered their heads. "I'm sorry.. we didn't think you'd feel this way. I mean, you've picked on her in the past..." Frankie said.

Toralei shrugged. "We might get a rise out of teasing her, but even we wouldn't want to hurt her that badly."

"Yeah, and she can be pretty nice when she's not being a total brat." Meowlody chimed in.

"I gotta say though, I would have never thought she was some kind of badass." Purrsephone spoke up.

The ghouls looked at her oddly. "What do you mean?" Frankie asked.

"Well, I saw on Spectra's blog that there was a picture of her with a sword at the museum, and she freaked out when she saw it. That is her in the picture, right?"

Everyone stared at Spectra with accusing glares.

"Well... well I couldn't not report on what happened at the museum!" She protested, holding up her laptop to show the post in question. "But I swear, I never insinuated that it was her in the picture."

"You got a good picture of the portrait though." Cleo mused. "I guess people would be able to see the resemblance between the two."

"I still can't believe it!" Purrsephone blurted out. "I mean, she's been a total ditz and a crybaby even since we joined Monster High, and all along she was this sword swinging asskicker! How come she didn't pull out some fighting moves when that giant squid attacked the school? Or when Van Hellscream showed up, or those Normies on Halloween? Why didn't she just take them out with some kung boo or somethi.. OW!"

Meowlody had whapped the back of her head. "You have no sense of tact, you know that sis?"

Gory tapped her chin thoughtfully. "You know, back in the old country I had heard rumours about Dracula's daughter being some kind of warrior, but I never truly believed them. Especially when I first met her. I guess there was truth in them after all. Who would have thought?"

Spectra floated toward Gory, frowning. "You ghouls had better not be planning to spread rumours about this. Draculaura's going through enough already."

Toralei glanced at Gory. "We won't, I swear. It's no fun teasing her if she's not awake to enjoy it."

She nodded toward the ghouls. "I hope she gets better soon. Really."

Taking their cue to leave, the four made their exit.

"Were they being nice to us for once?" Clawdeen asked, puzzled.

"I... guess. It's hard to tell with that bunch." Cleo shrugged.

Abbey looked thoughtful. "They raise good point though. It is... weird to think of Draculaura as some kind of warrior."

"I know what you mean. I still can't get my head around it." Lagoona sighed. "All this time we've known her, and she never once hinted that she'd..." She paused, not wanting to say the words. "...hurt people."

"I still can't believe it." Clawdeen rubbed her forehead. "Not just the fighting part, but her entire character."

There was rising anger in her voice. "All this time, I thought she was just naive and sheltered. She could be a ditz sometimes, but I thought that was just how she was. Now we're just finding out she's got all this experience and maturity that she's been hiding from us all this time! Why would she lie about herself like that? To us, her friends? Is everything we know about her just one big fat lie?!"

"I don't think so." Frankie spoke up sharply. "I think she was ashamed of how she acted in the past. She did things she didn't want us to know about... I was talking to my dad about it this morning."

She repeated the story her father had told her, eliciting some very surprised reactions from her friends.

"Wow... I am never gonna look at your dad the same way every time I go for a check up." Clawdeen rubbed her eyes.

Cleo looked to the distance. "Draculaura's reasoning makes a bit more sense now. We all have a bit of darkness in our family pasts that we're not proud of. Mine included."

"Yours?" Lagoona questioned. "I know your dad's a controlling arse sometimes, but the worst he's done is try and keep you and Deuce apart, right?"

"He wasn't always a pharaoh. He served in his father's army before ascending to the throne, and even when he was Pharaoh, he would often stand in the front line with his army whenever rival nations tried to attack." Cleo spoke pensively. "Mother would always shield me and Nefera from the... nastier details. But I would sometimes see prisoners dragged to the darkest depths of our palace, never to be seen again. When we were children, Nefera and I were afraid we might end up down there if we misbehaved."

She rubbed her arms. "At first, it scared me that Father could be so brutal, but as I got older, I began to understand the reasons for why he had to fight. I might not have liked them, but I could respect that he did what he did to protect our kingdom "

She let out a sigh of relief. "Thankfully nowadays, Father doesn't have to resort to such tactics. If someone poses a threat to his empire, he just buys them out."

"Yeah, that sounds a lot more like your dad." Lagoona said.

"I think I know where you're coming from." Clawdeen spoke quietly. My great-great grandfather was a soldier in the Night Wars. Whenever he comes over for family reunions, he's always got some epic story about how he cut down like a hundred vampire soldiers or how he took over an entire fortress with just five men..." She chuckled. "I think he exaggerates sometimes, but it's mostly true. But I have trouble imagining him as fighting in a war, he such the sweetest old guy."

"My dad and mum used to take part in ecological protests against developers trying to dig up bits of the Reef." Lagoona spoke. "They ended up getting in fights with property developers a few times, and even got locked up in jail."

"Really?" Frankie blinked. "Your dad and mom are really chilled out. They don't seem the violent type."

"Well as Dad would say, when you're fighting to protect something you care about, sometimes you have to be a bit rough." Lagoona chuckled. "Funny thing is, getting locked up after a protest was how me mum and dad first met. They started dating and got married shortly after. So something good came out of all that strife."

"I guess that's one thing our families have in common." Frankie spoke after some thought. "Our parents may have done some questionable things in the past, but they've tried to turn it around and become better monsters. I'm sure Draculaura is the same. Whatever she did, she's tried to become someone nicer."

The ghouls mulled on this for a moment, before Clawdeen spoke up. "Yeah, I can understand that... I just don't get why she had to lie about it for so long. Every time we've asked her about her past, she just said it was never anything important."

She clenched her fists. "What the hell happened to her that she thinks she needs to put on an act for everyone?"

Frankie could only sigh in response. "I wish I knew..."

Ghoulia groaned, pointing out that it was nearly lunchtime, and they should consider getting a bite to eat.

"Yeah, good idea." Frankie replied. "By the time we're done, we should be able to visit Draculaura in the hospitial."

* * *

After a light lunch, the ghouls made their way to the hospital. Approaching Draculaura's room, they saw two figures waiting in the corridor.

Clawd was slumped in a chair, snoring gently. Elissabat stood opposite of him, talking quietly into an iCoffin. Her bodyguards stood nearby, still as statues.

"...you only need to increase police presence in the city... Yes, I understand your concerns Lord Velascov, but unless you have actual proof that ASOME are involved, I don't think my presence is required at this time. Unless something else comes up, I have a friend here who needs me... yes. I'll contact you later."

She hung up as she noticed the ghouls. "Oh, hello everyone."

"Are you okay? That sounded important." Frankie pointed to Elissabat's phone.

"Just some minor business back in Transylvania. It's nothing too critical at the moment."

Clawdeen looked over at Clawd. "How long has my brother been here?"

"I'm not sure. He was here well before I turned up. I gather he's been pacing around, waiting for any news on Laura's condition." Elissabat smiled fondly. "She's quite lucky to have someone so devoted to her."

"Sure is.." Clawdeen smirked at her sleeping brother.

"Is Ramoanah here?" Cleo asked.

"She was here a short while ago. She's down at the museum doing some work for the main opening. She wanted to stay here with Laura, but she was so wound up and anxious, I suggested she take her mind off of it for a while and do something else."

"Has Draculaura improved at all?" Lagoona asked.

"I'm not sure. Your father went to speak with some other doctors, and he hasn't returned yet."

Clawdeen jabbed a claw into Clawd's shoulder. "Hey bro, wake up!"

Clawd jolted awake, almost falling out of his chair. "Wha.. what's going on?"

He looked up to see Clawdeen standing over him with a smirk on her face.

"Wakey wakey bro. You've been snoozing in the hospital."

"Damn, I must have drifted off.." He rubbed his eyes, then looked at Clawdeen expectedly. "Is Laura ok? Is she awake?"

"I'm afraid not." She sighed.

Clawd's face fell. "Oh... how long has it been?"

He pulled out his phone to check the time. Clawdeen glanced over and noticed he had several unread texts. "Looks like somebody's trying to call you."

"Yeah, it's Deuce and the the other guys. They wanted to hang out, try to cheer me up..." He glanced at the door. "But I felt I needed to be here. In case she wakes up, you know?"

Clawdeen patted his shoulder sympathetically.

Just then, Viktor rounded the corner. "Oh, you're all here. Good."

"Hey Dad. How's Draculaura coping? Can we see her?"

He nodded. "Of course. She's still unconscious though. But hearing your voices may help bring her out of it."

The group all followed Viktor into the room. Draculaura was laying on the bed, as still as when they had seen her last night. It still wasn't an easy sight.

"Has there been any change?" Frankie asked her father."

"Very little." Viktor sighed. "She moved a little and tried to speak some time ago, but she still hasn't woken up. And she's still not responding to any stimuli."

"She tried to speak? What did she say?" Clawd asked.

"It was just random mumbling, we couldn't make any sense of it. Still, it's a sign that she's not completely gone." Viktor replied.

Cleo looked puzzled. "So if she's still somewhat conscious, why is it so hard to wake her?"

"We're not sure. Her brain activity has been constantly going up and down in the last few hours. It comes close to reaching an activity state, but not enough to awaken."

Ghoulia groaned a question.

"Oh.. yes, we have been keeping track of her brain activity. I've got the charts here..."

Viktor produced a folder from his lab coat, and opened it to pull out some sheets of paper. On them were graphs detailing Draculaura's brain activity over the last few hours.

"As you can see..." He pointed to the graphs. "Her brain activity has these spikes where she seems to be trying to wake up, but then it goes right back down. It's almost as if she's purposely trying to keep herself in a coma."

Everyone reacted to that.

"What?! Why would she want to stay in a coma?!" Clawd exclaimed.

Clawdeen raised an eyebrow. "I guess it's one way to avoid having to explain all this to us."

"Draculaura!" Cleo suddenly barked, glaring at her prone friend. "I demand you wake up at once! You have no right to worry us all like this!"

"I don't think one of your royal orders is going to work this time." Spectra sighed.

Suddenly, to everyone's surprise, Draculaura started moving. Her eyes remained closed, but she was shifting in her bed, as if trying to get up.

"Uuuuhh..."

"See? It did work." Cleo spoke smugly.

"Laura!" Clawd was immediately at her side. "Come on ghoul, wake up!"

"Nngh.. no.." Draculaura moaned, as she thrashed in her bed. "No... I won't... I won't let you out.. no.."

The group watched this strange sight, confused and concerned.

"What is she talking about?" Frankie asked.

"I'm not sure, this is similar to how she acted last time." Viktor said.

"No... can't let them know.. no..." Draculaura murmured.

"You mean us? Can't let us know what?" Frankie leaned in, hoping for a response.

"...no ...no.." Her voice faded away as her head fell back against the pillow.

"Laura! Stay with us!" Clawd cried out. But she was once again still.

* * *

The group stayed with her while Viktor went to check on some other patients, pulling in some spare plastic chairs from the corridor or leaning against the wall, or in Spectra's case, floating up near the ceiling.

They rested in silence, only occasionally speaking or bringing up some light conversation. Clawd remained silent, his focus solely on Draculaura.

"It's so hard to see her like this.." Frankie sighed. She glanced at her friends. "Was it like this when I..." She tried to form the right words. "..you know... kinda died back in that time travel incident?"

Clawdeen nodded. "Yeah... at least then, there was still hope we could bring you back with electricity. But this... I have no idea what to do. I feel so damn powerless."

Elissabat touched her shoulder. "It's hard to bear, I know. But we have to keep hoping for the best. Someone once told me that hope always appears when things are darkest. You just have to be willing to steel your nerves when a chance occurs, no matter how slim it looks."

"That's not bad advice." Lagoona nodded. "Where'd you hear that?"

"From Laura, actually." Elissabat smiled. "She would often have some interesting stories and lessons she had learned from her various campaigns. If there was one positive from her time in the military, it was that it taught her much about leadership and wisdom."

"Draculaura being wise... I have to admit, after several scaremesters of her being the ditsy one of our group, I find that hard to believe." Cleo mused.

Elissabat raised her eyebrows. "Has she really been that bad?"

"Not all the time. But more often than not, she can be a complete, air-headed kid."

"It wasn't really so bad when we were all freshmen." Clawdeen spoke. "We all thought it was just how she was. And we were all a little immature back then. But now that we're sophomores, her behaviour just gets really inappropriate at times."

"She cries over the smallest things, she forgets important events because she's distracted by some cute thing, and don't get me started on how much she overreacts about being near meat." Cleo spoke. "Sometimes, she is the biggest, most over-dramatic diva you can imagine, and that's coming from me."

Elissabat shook her head sadly. "Yes, that does sound a lot like how she acted after the war. After hearing about her bravery and maturity in battle and in the vampire court, it was disheartening to see her become so childish. When she approached me in Hauntlywood, when she was trying to find the Vampire Heart, I couldn't believe that she hadn't changed in almost 400 years."

"Damn..." Clawdeen breathed. She hadn't really thought about how long Draculaura had been acting like this.

"At that time, I denied that I knew her. I was ready to just let her go away so I could continue being Veronica Von Vamp. But then... she said something."

Elissabat closed her eyes as she remembered. "She spoke about how she would never give up looking for me, how finding me would be her way of doing something meaningful for our people. The way she spoke... it reminded me of how she acted during the war. It made me wonder if the older version of her I remembered was still in there."

She smiled at Draculaura fondly. " And when she spoke about how much our people needed their Queen, it made me realize, for the first time in centuries, that by running away to become an actress, I had been denying a big part of myself as well. I made my decision, shortly afterwards, to reveal my identity to her and... well, you all know what happened next."

Clawdeen nodded in agreement. "Yeah.. I was so proud of her during that whole adventure. She really stepped up like a leader and kept us going, even when things looked tough."

Everyone looked at Draculaura, fond looks in their eyes.

"You know, we've seen so much of the worst of her recently, you almost forget about all the good things she's done as well." Clawd spoke. "Our relationship's never been perfect, but being with her has really made me want to improve myself. Be a better manster, you know?"

Frankie nodded in agreement. "I don't think I would have ever gotten into the fearleading team without her encouragement."

"I can't count how many times she's consoled me when Gil and I were having troubles." Lagoona added.

"She was one of the first friends I ever made when I joined Monster High." Cleo mused. "At first, I only befriended her because I wanted to know another 'royal' monster, and as the daughter of Dracula, I felt she qualified. Those first few months, I was stunned to see her associating with 'commoners' but she showed me there was merit in opening up to other people. In a way, its thanks to her I was able to befriend Ghoulia, and all you other ghouls."

Ghoulia smiled. "And she could always help calm me down when I was feeling frustrated with your behaviour." She spoke in zombish.

Cleo raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't that bad when we first started out, was I?"

"You got better." Ghoulia groaned.

"She might not have the best fashion sense... but she's always supported me while I've been learning how to design clothes." Clawdeen spoke in a low voice, trying to hold back tears." She even encouraged me when I was just a kid. No matter what, she's always been there for me..."

Everyone lapsed into silence. Frankie imagined they were doing the same thing she was, thinking off all the good memories they had of her.. and wondering if that would be all they had left of her if she never woke up.

All the times she had helped her, comforted her, annoyed her, made her smile... these memories rushed through her mind. The idea that Draculaura would never be a part of anyone's life...

She refused to accept it. A wave of determination washed over her.

She clenched her hands tightly. "We have to do something.

"Like what?" Clawd asked.

"I don't know! But we can't just stand here and leave her like this!" Frankie exclaimed. "I mean, we've done crazy stuff before! We can save the school, we can bring me back to life, surely we can wake Draculaura up!"

"I'm sure your father's doing everything medically possible for her." Lagoona assured.

"Well maybe we need to do something outside of medically possible. Use some mad science or something..." A thought hit her. "Hexiciah Steam's time machine! Maybe we could use the time machine to go back to before the gala. Stop Draculaura from seeing the portrait altogether so she doesn't collapse."

Cleo grimaced. "Oh yes, because time travel worked out SO well for us last time!"

"Even if we wanted to go back, we couldn't." Lagoona said. "Headmistress Bloodgood ordered Ghoulia and Robecca to dismantle the machine after the 'dinosaur' incident, remember?"

Ghoulia groaned quietly, trying not to remember how she had accidentally instigated the 'dinosaur' incident.

Frankie's face fell. "Well... there must be something! We need to find some way to break her out of this coma, or whatever this is!"

Clawdeen held her friend's shoulder to calm her down. "You heard what your dad said. It's like she's trying not to wake up. Until we know why exactly her brain's doing that, there's not much we can do."

She sighed and looked at Draculaura. "At least we know her mind's still working. Though I would love to know what she's thinking right now, to make us all worry like this."

"What she's thinking..." Frankie muttered, thinking on that phrase. Hadn't something like this happened before...

An idea sparked in her head. "Omigod, I got it!"

She rounded on Ghoulia. "Ghoulia, do you remember when Hoodude was spreading bad luck all over the place, and we didn't know why? You made that machine with Scarah to look into his mind."

Ghoulia remembered that incident from about a year ago. Hoodude had been in a deep funk after Heath had made fun of him, causing his powers of bad luck to affect everyone in his vicinity. Only after Ghoulia, with some advice from Scarah Screams, had invented a machine which allowed them to move their consciousness into Hoodude's memory and see what his problem was were they able to stop it before the entire student body was incapacitated.

"We never used that machine again once we fixed Hoodude's problem. Couldn't we put it back together and use it to look into Draculaura's mind?"

Ghoulia looked thoughtful. "I suppose..." She spoke in Zombish. "But that machine was built to look into Hoodude's mind while he was sedated, we never calibrated it for monsters in a coma... or flesh and blood monsters for that matter."

A thought hit her, and she pulled out a diePad and stylus from her backpack. She began rapidly scribbling on it. "Although... it would be fairly easy to adjust the cerebral sensors to a vampire's brain waves..."

Frankie glanced over her shoulder. "Yeah... and if you use an alternating current and copper wiring, we could maintain a better signal with her brain..."

"We could use teflon coating in the transmission helmets to ensure we get a more stable vision with our cerebral cortexes..."

Ghoulia tapped the screen with her finger triumphantly. "It could work. It could actually work."

"Wait.." Elissabat spoke. "Are you saying we could actually look into Laura's memories? As in, we could see them?"

"If we can get the machine working, yeah!" Frankie was getting excited now. "And if we could see what memory triggered her coma, then maybe we could help her come out of it. Send a message to her mind, let her know we're here to help."

Clawdeen grinned. "Give her a therapy session in her own head. If we could do with with Hoodude, we can do it with her."

"Well what are we waiting for? Lets get this thing built and help her." Clawd demanded.

"I think Ghoulia still has some of the parts stored in her lab." Frankie replied. "If we work together, we can probably put it all together and make the adjustment by tonight."

Cleo raised a hand. "I hate to be 'that' ghoul, but don't you think we should talk to your father about this first? He'd probably want to make sure this machine is safe to use."

"Yeah, good point." Frankie nodded. "Ghoulia, think you could help me put together a blueprint we can show my dad?"

Ghoulia nodded, already scribbling on her tablet.

Clawdeen pulled out her phone. "We should call Scarah. She helped you ghouls out with this last time, and her powers are probably gonna be useful."

"Ooh, we should ask Twyla if she can help too. She's got some skill in looking into other people's dreams..."

The ghouls all began speaking excitedly, hope beginning to rise in all of them.

* * *

An hour later, the group approached Viktor and Ramoanah, who had returned from the museum. Viktor was reading a thick set of notes compiled by Ghoulia.

"Let me get this straight. You want to hook Draculaura up to a barely tested machine, which uses an electrical current to scan her brainwaves and create a virtual image of her memories, then you're going to transplant your own consciousness into her memories so you can view them?"

Frankie cringed a little. "Well, when you put it like that, it does sound a little crazy..."

"Crazy? It's brilliant!" Her father was grinning ear from ear as he picked Frankie up and hugged her. "Oh I knew you'd finally embrace the mad scientist side of you someday. You truly are my daughter!"

"Ahem..." Ramoanah coughed politely.

Viktor blushed as he put Frankie down. "Right. Sorry, got a bit excited there."

"So, can we actually do this?" Frankie asked.

"Well, your research looks sound, and we've certainly got the equipment here at the hospital to make sure Laura remains unharmed..." Viktor turned to Ramoanah. "But ultimately, the decision to go ahead with this is with her parents."

Ramoanah nodded, a determined look on her face. "I have to call Draco, but I think I know what his answer will be. He would do anything to help his daughter." She addressed the ghouls. "I've heard so much about how you ghouls have helped each other in the past from Laura. I know I can trust you to bring her out of this."

"We'll try not to let you down." Frankie promised. "Mr D's coming home soon, right?"

Ramoanah nodded. "If the weather permits, he should be here by morning."

"Well, if we get to work now, we can get the machine up and running tonight. And if we're really lucky, we might be able to wake Laura by the time her dad gets here. Or at least, understand what happened to her."

"That would be wonderful, but please, don't do anything risky."

Frankie nodded, then turned to her friends. "Okay ghouls. Lets get to work!"

* * *

Night had fallen. The hospital hallways were lit with fluorescent lights, casing eerie shadows on the walls. Frankie didn't notice though, more concerned with getting a Marrghs bar and a can of Crypt Cola from a vending machine. She leaned against the wall as she munched on the bar, hoping it would calm her nerves.

It had taken all afternoon to put together Ghoulia's mind-reading machine. Finding the old blueprints from her earlier experiment with Hoodude hadn't taken long, the real work had been finding the needed components, some of which were quite rare, and getting them to the hospital for assembly. The ghouls had all run about town looking for necessary parts, and Clawd had roped Deuce, Andy and Slo Moe into helping him carry the larger stuff into the hospital.

Now, it was nearly complete. But despite all the hard work they had put into it, and Ghoulia's usual reassurances that it would work, Frankie was till worried that something would go wrong, that they might permanently harm Draculaura's mind.

It was almost as scary as what they would find when they actually went into her head.

"Frankie?" She looked up to see her father peering out of the door of Draculaura's room. "Are you alright? We're almost ready to begin."

Frankie quickly downed the last of her drink. She took a deep breath and firmly tossed the can into a nearby bin.

"I'm good, Dad."

She walked into the room, where Draculaura's bed had been placed in the center. Surrounding her were several large computer banks and monitors. A set of cables ran from one computer to sensors taped to Draculaura's head.

Ghoulia and Viktor were tinkering with the machines, while nearby Lagoona was setting up some old chairs, with what looked like metal helmets attached to the backs, connected to the computers via cables. On the other side, Twyla and Scarah were affixing a large object, covered with a cloth, onto a table.

The rest of the group stood by the walls, observing the work. Ramoanah looked particularly impressed.

"I must say, I'm surprised you were able to put this all together so quickly."

"Well, we were able to compact all the tech into a smaller version from the last time we did this." Frankie spoke proudly.

"Yeah, the hard part was just getting it all here." Lagoona spoke up as she finished adjusting the chairs.

"And... what is that?" Ramoanah pointed at the object Scarah and Twyla were working on.

"Oh, this?" Twyla grabbed the cloth and pulled it away, revealing what looked like a large, jagged mirror, made of purple glass.

"This is a Dream Stone. It's a stone which is specially attuned to people's dreams, and allows people to actually see what a person is dreaming. Boogeyman have been using them for centuries."

"Really?" Cleo's eyes widened. "If it can do that, why did we need all this?" She glanced at the machines.

"The Dream Stone can only see what a person is currently dreaming. If we're going to figure out what's bothering Laura, we need to go into her memories and bring it up to the surface, so to speak." Twyla explained. "I brought it here because I thought it could be helpful if we could see what you're doing in her mind, so we can guide you."

"And I'm gonna use the ol' telepathy so I can talk to you while you're in there." Scarah poked the side of her head. "So we can give you advice."

"Nice! This should make finding our way around her brain a cinch." Clawdeen grinned. She glanced at the Dream Stone. "Boogey Sand and now this... your dad has some amazing stuff."

"Oh it's not my dad's. Dream stones are extremely rare, even my dad can't find one for himself."

"So where did you get this one?"

"That would be me." A high-pitched, almost squeaky voice spoke up. To everyone's surprise, a small, purple skinned centaur, only as tall as everyone's knees, stepped out from behind the table. She looked up at Twyla. "It's all hooked up to your machine Twyla. You'll be able to see everything in her head."

Twyla let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much Aery. I really appreciate this."

The tiny centaur shrugged. "Hey, no problem. Just make you bring the Dream Stone back undamaged, okay?

She checked a tiny watch on her wrist. "Oh man, I have to head back to the Dream Pastures. Let me know if you need help with anything else." She glanced at Draculaura. "I hope your friend comes through safely."

And with that, she began trotting out of the room.

"Who the heck..." Clawdeen asked, confused.

"She's an old friend from... far away. We help each other out sometimes." Twyla smiled.

Suddenly, there was a loud bang and a spark of electricity. Viktor pulled his hands away from a cable, blowing on his fingers to cool them.

"Well, everything's set up. We're all ready to go."

Clawd looked at the chairs. "So, we're meant to sit in these chairs, and our consciousnesses gets to walk around in Draculaura's mind?"

"It's a little more complex than that, but yes."

"There's only three chairs though."

"Well, we can only run enough voltage through the machine to safely transmit three people into someone's mind. Any more than that, and we risk causing brain damage."

Clawdeen looked at the chairs warily. "So, who's going in?"

Viktor scratched his head thoughtfully. "Good point. I can call in some therapists..."

"Therapists?!" Cleo scoffed in disbelief. "I think it's obvious who should be the ones to go into Laura's mind."

She pointed at Frankie, Clawdeen and Elissabat. "You two are her closest friends, and you know more about her past than anyone. If anyone can get through to her in there, its you ghouls."

Elissabat nodded. "That does make sense. I could certainly recognise some things from her older memories of Transylvania."

"Now hold on." Viktor raised his voice. "This is already a little risky, I'm not sure we should be letting you kids perform this, let alone the Queen of Vampires..."

Frankie shook her head. "Dad, I know you're worried about us, but Cleo's right. Draculaura needs someone who knows her best to help her face her problems."

Viktor still looked unsure.

"We'll be fine Doc." Clawdeen assured him. "I mean, you and Ghoulia have tested this thing, right? I totally trust you two to look after us while we're in there."

Ghoulia gave her with a thumbs up.

Elissabat stepped forward. "And I want to go, for her. I wouldn't be where I am now if it hadn't been for Laura taking the risk to find me. The very least I can do is help her now."

Viktor still looked uncertain, but eventually, he let out a long sigh. "You make a valid point. And I doubt I could stop you otherwise." He looked into his daughter's eyes. "But I want you to promise me, that if the situation feels dangerous, you'll pull out of her mind immediately."

"Promise."

"In that case, lets get you ready."

Frankie, Clawdeen and Elissabat were guided to the chairs, where Viktor and Ghoulia strapped the metal helmets to their heads. Once they were comfortable, Ghoulia moved to the machine and began flipping switches.

A loud hum filled the air as electricity flowed through the machine. The ghoul's hair, including Draculaura's temporarily stood on end.

Ghoulia tapped some commands on a keyboard, and gave a thumbs up to Viktor.

"Well, we're ready to send you in." He gave the three ghouls a serious look. "Now remember, we're not sure what the state of Draculaura's mind is right now, so be careful while looking around in there."

Scarah and Twyla pointed at the Dream Stone. "We'll be monitoring you guys with this, so just let us know if things get dicey."

"Will do." Frankie gave them a thumbs up.

"We're ready when you are." Clawdeen spoke calmly, though it was obvious she was digging her claws into the arms of her chair.

"You'll do great, sis." Clawd smiled. "Bring Laura back safe, okay?"

The group all gathered together to give their regards as Viktor prepared to activate the machine.

"Ra-Speed, ghouls!"

"Good luck mates!"

"Come back victorious, my friends!"

Ramoanah clasped her hands together tightly. "Stay safe, children... and bring Laura home."

Frankie gave her a determined nod. As the humming of the machine grew louder, she looked at Draculaura again.

"Hang on Laura... we're coming to get you."

"We're starting it up!" Viktor called. "3.. 2.. 1.. Go!"

He pulled a lever, and Frankie felt something jolt through her head, like a bolt of lightning. Everything went black. She felt the strangest sensation, as if someone was tugging her head and pulling her out of her body. Then, for a few moments, she felt nothing at all.

Silence.

She heard Clawdeen calling her name. She felt sensation running through her.

She opened her eyes... and was quite surprised by what she saw.

END OF CHAPTER 2

* * *

 **Notes**

 _If you're wondering about the time machine and mind reading technology mentioned here, they appeared in the movie Freaky Fusion, and the Monster High webisode Undo the Voodoo._


End file.
